FIFA has released a statement revealing the enormous number of ticket requests it has received, despite visa restrictions imposed by Trump.
Recently, the president announced a permanent halt on immigrant visas from 75 countries. This decision comes just months before the United States, along with Mexico and Canada, is scheduled to host one of the world’s most significant sports events.
The Department of Homeland Security tweeted on January 14: “The State Department will pause immigrant visa processing from 75 countries whose migrants take welfare from the American people at unacceptable rates. The freeze will remain active until the U.S. can ensure that new immigrants will not extract wealth from the American people.”
The countries affected by this suspension include Haiti, Montenegro, Barbados, Cuba, Morocco, and Ghana.
This announcement might impact thousands of individuals planning to travel to the U.S. for the World Cup this summer, but it appears that it hasn’t deterred people from applying for tickets.
In the past 33 days, FIFA has received over 500 million ticket requests, according to the organization. The ticket request period concluded on Tuesday, January 13.
FIFA has stated that applicants will be notified if their requests were successful no earlier than February 5.
According to a press release, aside from the host nations (the U.S., Mexico, and Canada), the highest number of ticket applications came from fans in Germany, England, Brazil, Spain, Portugal, Argentina, and Colombia.
Unfortunately for fans from Colombia and Brazil, these nations are part of the list affected by the U.S. suspension on immigrant visas. However, the suspension does not apply to non-immigrant, temporary tourist, or business visas.
In addition to the availability of non-immigrant visas, FIFA recently announced the FIFA Priority Appointment Scheduling System (FIFA PASS).
Fans holding valid World Cup tickets can apply for a FIFA PASS, which grants them priority access to visa interview appointments before the tournament.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino stated: “America welcomes the World. We have always said that this will be the greatest and most inclusive FIFA World Cup in history – and the FIFA PASS service is a very concrete example of that.”
“I extend my sincere gratitude to the President of the United States Donald J. Trump, Vice President JD Vance, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, Executive Director Andrew Giuliani, and the White House Task Force for their incredible support.”
“The United States is set to welcome fans from around the world on an unprecedented scale, and we are preparing to ensure that football unites the world when the tournament kicks off in North America next June.”
It is important to note that the pass does not guarantee entry into the U.S. Applicants must still undergo full security screening.