SAEDNEWS: The United States, which will host the World Cup next year, also uses visa restrictions as leverage against many countries.
According to the political service of Saed News, citing Inside the Games, the United States announced this week that it will increase the number of international consular staff in order to facilitate the visa issuance process, hoping to encourage fans to attend the 2026 World Cup in the summer. However, it is still unclear which countries will benefit from this.
While the final match schedule has not yet been determined (many national teams are currently in the qualifying rounds and will remain in this status until next year), increasing consular staff will not prevent full and open restrictions imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump. The complex geopolitical map drawn by this conservative leader since the beginning of his second presidential term has turned visa processing into a negotiation pressure tactic when addressing issues of immigration, international trade, or peace talks.
Earlier last month, the Associated Press reported that increased restrictions for Palestinian visa applicants have made it nearly impossible for them to enter the United States for business, work, leisure, or educational purposes—a move aimed at curbing illegal immigration that led to the cancellation of thousands of student visas.
The Trump administration’s effort to exert stricter border control has become a fundamental policy, with accidental Immigration and Customs enforcement actions and large-scale deportations within U.S. territory becoming almost routine news.
Considering that the U.S. will host the World Cup next year and the Olympics in 2028, it is necessary to ease these restrictions. According to government data, foreign travel in August decreased by 2.9 percent compared to last year, reaching about 3.5 million tourists.
FIFA, the International Olympic Committee, and, more specifically, the organizers of the Los Angeles Olympics have made behind-the-scenes efforts in recent months to convince Trump to create as welcoming an environment as possible for fans worldwide. However, restrictions remain in place for certain countries that the United States has listed as banned or “high risk.”
