A coalition of community organizations and documentary filmmaker Billy Corben on Thursday called again on FIFA and Miami-Dade to use their influence to protect soccer fans from federal immigration agents roaming stadiums during next year's World Cup tournament.
At a demonstration in front of FIFA's Coral Gables office, they pressured officials to protect World Cup attendees from "overzealous immigration enforcement" and to reinvest Miami-Dade County tax dollars set aside for the World Cup into the local community. They held a similar protest in June.
"Miami-Dade is a proud county of immigrants, and we are subsidizing the World Cup with over $60 million in public cash and resources," Corben said during Thursday's press conference. "In a year in which we suffered a $400 million budget deficit, Mayor Daniella Levine Cava is failing us all."
The activists say their fears about immigration agents are warranted, citing last week's New York Times report that revealed "FIFA was alerted to 145 human rights concerns at Club World Cup games, including federal policies and enforcement."
The Times reported there were complaints of alleged sightings of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials at stadiums during the tournament.
READ MORE: Immigrant advocates press FIFA, Miami-Dade officials to keep ICE agents away from soccer events
"We unequivocally believe that any human rights plan that does not include protections for fans who are immigrants living in the United States or visiting the country is incomplete, and we urge the Miami Host Committee to commit to no immigration enforcement in or near the stadiums during the games," the activists said in a statement announcing Thursday protest.
They warn that the stakes are too high in a state with an aggressive posture toward immigration.
"The potential for due process abuses, racial profiling, and for fans to lose their liberties and freedoms is far too great," they said, noting that the backdrop in Florida "includes the reopening of the Everglades [Alligator Alcatraz] facility and news of a Mexican national on a tourist visa who was detained and deported."
"The Trump Administration’s recent immigration policies have affected both staff and fans," they said. "The time for FIFA to act is now."
Since the first protest on June 30, activists said an official of the 2026 FIFA World Cup Miami Host Committee contacted them, according to Yareliz Mendez-Zamora, Policy Coordinator with American Friends Service Committee. She said no meeting date with FIFA has been set.
"This is an international game. They need to meet with people who deal with immigrants," Mendez-Zamora told WLRN.
She added: "I want to be in the stadium with my family screaming, but it's not worth it if it means people are going to be taken [into federal custody]."
Amy Morales, director of advocacy and policy for Engage Miami, said community nonprofits had to fight for full funding before county commissioners at the same time the World Cup was getting $46 million in subsidies from the county.
"What we're saying here today is that we do not want our taxpayer dollars funding the separation of families — funding deportations," Morales said to WLRN.
Luna Plaza, a migrant justice committee member of the Florida Student Power Network attended both protests. The University of Miami student said she was disappointed activists were not able to speak with FIFA after the first demonstration but hopes that the second one will prompt a meeting.
"Sports, in general, shapes all of our lives," Plaza toldb WLRN. "It's really saddening to hear that so many safe spaces are being taken away for undocumented folks — including sports. It's just really messed up."
