Washington Post-UMD Poll: Most Americans Oppose ICE Presence at World Cup Stadiums
Results Also Indicate Support for Team Iran to Play in United States
With the World Cup promising to be one of the summer’s most exciting sporting events in the United States and abroad, a new Washington Post-University of Maryland poll shows that a majority of Americans oppose the possibility of stadiums being patrolled by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) during matches.
Sixty-five percent of Americans oppose the idea of ICE presence at U.S. stadiums during the World Cup, set to be hosted in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Professor of Government and Politics Mike Hanmer, director of UMD’s Center for Democracy and Civic Engagement, noted that decisions about ICE presence at the matches could have political consequences.
“I expect that if ICE agents are deployed to World Cup matches both the news media and social media will take notice,” Hanmer said. “The results of this poll suggest that doing so would further erode Trump’s support.”
The opposition to using ICE at World Cup matches among young people stood out to Hanmer.
“This is a group Trump won over in large numbers in 2024, but has been slipping away. I think even more will turn away if ICE is injected into the biggest global sporting event of the summer,” Hanmer said.
Mark Hyman, director of the University of Maryland’s Shirley Povich Center for Sports Journalism in the Philip Merrill College of Journalism, said that the unique role that sports plays in society is apparent in other responses to the survey as well. Notably, most Americans support Iran’s participation in the event, despite the current war between the United States and Iran.
The poll shows that 81 percent of Americans who self-identified as soccer fans support allowing Iran to play in the United States, compared with 72 percent of those who are not fans.
About 7 in 10 Americans also say Iranian soccer players should be allowed to stay in the United States if they fear persecution from the Iranian government.
“Sports give asylum and political persecution a completely different framing,” Hyman said. “The Trump Administration apparently would have support across the political spectrum for welcoming Iranian players.”
Read More in The Washington Post
Photo via iStock. Located in Rutherford, N.J., Metlife Stadium is one of the sports venues selected for the 2026 World Cup and will be temporarily named to "New York New Jersey Stadium."
Published on Wed, Jun 3, 2026 - 2:53PM