Explore the latest developments concerning 'A World Cup.
'A World Cup for them not us': Fans' anger at US travel bans and visa restrictions
When Iraq's football team qualified for the World Cup at the end of March, Abdulla Adnan bought tickets for his country's matches against Norway and France, which will be played in the US cities of Boston and Philadelphia this month.
"To go to a match, a stadium, a crowd, cheering, and see my team – that is worth the world to me," he says. "It's a feeling that no other feeling can compare to." This is only the second time Iraq has qualified for the World Cup – the first was in 1986.
And Adnan is not alone. Fans from more than a quarter of the countries taking part in the World Cup are facing travel bans, tighter restrictions or high visa rejection rates, analysis of travel data by the BBC World Service shows.
World Cup 2026 visa chaos: from referee Omar Artan to Iranian officials – who is affected?
Fifa has found its tournament squarely caught up in the second Trump administrationâs aggressive border restrictions
For successive menâs World Cup tournaments Fifa has managed to bulldoze its way through costly immigration and entry requirements. In 2014, Brazil passed a law granting free temporary visas to ticket holders, and for Russia and Qatar, the respective autocracies bypassed traditional border friction using Fan IDs and Hayya cards as makeshift visa entry documents that also provided free public transport. Not so in 2026, where Fifa has found its tournament squarely caught up in the second Trump administrationâs aggressive border restrictions. Here are some of the people that have been affected.
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Some World Cup visa waivers suddenly reversed right before trips to U.S: "Far too much money to just not go"
Some World Cup fans are running into a last minute problem getting into the United States. They just found out that their approval to enter the country changed at the last minute.
There are 42 countries enrolled in a visa waiver program where citizens can generally come to the U.S. for up to 90 days for tourism or business travel, without applying for a visa at an American embassy or consulate. That process that can take months or even years.
Instead, those travelers have to fill out an application online using a process known as the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA), before entering the U.S.. That system is designed to ensure applicants are eligible for visa-free travel to the U.S., and that they don't pose security concerns.
For more detailed information, explore updates concerning 'A World Cup.
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