Securing “the largest sporting event ever held in the United States” against a wide array of possible threats will involve thousands of law enforcement officers protecting nearly 80 World Cup games hosted in 11 cities across the country, according to a series of law enforcement threat bulletins obtained by CNN.
While authorities “have not identified any specific and credible threats to WC26 stadium venues or official FIFA Fan Festivals 2026,” reads one joint FBI-Department of Homeland Security threat assessment, the highly publicized and attended games taking place over weeks will present attractive targets to extremists, criminals, and nation-states when the US portion of events begin Friday in Los Angeles.
“We remain concerned about the potential for an increase in terrorist activity, reportable targeted violence, mass casualty incidents, transnational crime, unauthorized unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) activity, cyber attacks, and foreign intelligence operations,” the threat assessment states. “These concerns stem from the emergence of several converging trends: intensified rhetoric from foreign terrorist organizations targeting large-scale events, heightened violence at mass protests within the Homeland, and escalating geopolitical tensions.”
In addition to the potential for targeted violence, the bulletins sent by federal intelligence analysts to local law enforcement across the country note the potential for a surge in other types of crime authorities will be on guard to disrupt and investigate, including: property theft, human trafficking, fraud schemes, counterfeit goods, and cyber attacks.
One unique aspect of the games: attendance by Iran’s national team amid ongoing global hostilities in the Middle East.
“Upset fans in the (Iranian) diaspora could cause clashes at the Fan Festival and other events taking place in the Los Angeles area of responsibility,” according to the joint FBI-DHS threat assessment. “If Iran does play, the threat of transnational repression on local members of the Iranian diaspora will be cause for concern.”
