Amnesty International and dozens of U.S. civil and human rights organizations issued the advisory Thursday, urging people planning to attend the World Cup in the United States to consider what they described as worsening conditions tied to President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown.
In their warning, the groups said the risk environment includes “rising authoritarianism and increasing violence” as the administration pursues aggressive immigration enforcement. They said the advisory was necessary “in light of the deteriorating human rights situation in the United States and in the absence of meaningful action and concrete guarantees from FIFA, host cities, or the U.S. government.”
The advisory said visitors could be arbitrarily denied entry to the United States, and could be detained in “inhumane” conditions, according to the groups’ message. It also said visitors could be subjected to invasive searches of their phones and social media, describing those actions as part of the broader enforcement posture.
The groups pointed to immigration surges in cities including Los Angeles, Chicago and Minneapolis. They tied those surges to accusations of racial profiling and to the violent suppression of protests, using those episodes as examples of the risks they said visitors face during the tournament period.
Tourism officials criticized the advisory, saying the groups were threatening the livelihoods of service industry workers in an effort to achieve political goals. Geoff Freeman, president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association, said there were legitimate concerns about entry policies but that they were being exaggerated, noting that the United States saw 67 million international travelers last year.
Freeman said “The notion that visiting America poses a meaningful safety risk is not a good-faith warning, it’s a political tactic designed to cause economic harm,” according to his statement. He argued that the advisory message aimed to undermine the economic interests of the travel sector around the World Cup.
The groups’ criticism also drew a response from FIFA, which said it is committed to human rights. A FIFA spokesperson pointed to statements and policies, including FIFA’s governing documents, which say, “FIFA is committed to respecting all internationally recognized human rights and shall strive to promote the protection of these rights.”
Beyond the advisory itself, the tourism industry is preparing for a major World Cup-related boost, organizers said, even as uncertainty around U.S. entry rules has increased. The advisory arrives after Trump returned to the White House last year, a period the report described as marked by a decline in international travelers and by remarks that offended U.S. allies.
The administration, the report said, is betting that expedited visa processing and excitement about the tournament will outweigh concerns that Trump’s immigration messaging undercuts the global unity theme the World Cup is meant to represent. The tournament kicks off June 11 with games across North America, including 11 U.S. stadiums, two in Canada and three in Mexico.