Representatives from U.S. cities hosting the upcoming FIFA World Cup have raised urgent alarms before the House Homeland Security Committee, warning that security preparations are significantly behind schedule.
With just over 100 days until kickoff, officials cited two major setbacks: the freezing of nearly $900 million in FEMA funds allocated for World Cup security and a lack of coordination between federal and local agencies. Amid a federal government shutdown, FEMA announced it would scale back operations to “bare-minimum, life-saving” functions — effectively halting grant distributions intended to support host cities.
The funding, initially approved under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, included $625 million for large-scale security operations and an additional $250 million to strengthen drone detection and mitigation systems across 11 host states.
Local leaders warn that without immediate financial support, critical event infrastructure — including Fan Fest sites — may be cancelled. Security officials from cities such as Kansas City and Foxboro say staffing shortages and funding uncertainty could even jeopardize their ability to host scheduled matches.
Source: TRT Africa
