With less than a month to go before the 2026 World Cup kicks off, newly appointed Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said immigration-related arrests at venues and host cities are not off the table, while insisting officials will not attend matches to "round up" noncitizens.
In an interview with CBS News, Mullin said the presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents at World Cup matches is tied to DHS efforts to enforce customs laws and combat counterfeit merchandise.
"It's Immigration and Customs Enforcement," Mullin said. "So what do you find at a tremendous amount of sporting events? Counterfeit products, counterfeit tickets. You have counterfeit clothing being sold on the streets."
In February, acting ICE Director Todd Lyons told Congress the agency would play a "crucial role" in ensuring the safety of participants and visitors, though he did not provide details on immigration enforcement.
In the CBS interview, Mullin said ICE's presence at major sporting events is not unusual, adding that agents sometimes encounter criminal suspects at those events, including individuals wanted for murder, drug trafficking and other serious crimes, as well as Interpol targets.
"When they're at these sporting events, we're not out there doing immigration enforcement," Mullin said. "But we are looking for maybe people that shouldn't be in this country because they're on terrorist watchlists."
Pressed on whether ICE would avoid immigration enforcement operations during the World Cup, Mullin left open the possibility of arrests connected to immigration violations.
"Well, ICE always does immigration enforcement. We're always going to do that. But we're not there solely for that purpose. We're there to do our job," he said. "We're not there to go round up mass individuals, but we are always looking for the worst of the worst. We're going to continue to do that."
The World Cup begins June 11 with a match between Mexico and South Africa in Mexico City and runs through July 19. The United States will host 78 of the tournament's 104 matches, including the final.
The tournament also coincides with ICE's search for a new director. Lyons is expected to step down May 31 after announcing his resignation last month.
Former law enforcement officer David Venturella will replace Lyons on an interim basis while DHS searches for a permanent director, a position that has not been filled by a Senate-confirmed appointee since the Obama administration.
"We want to put somebody there that's permanent," Mullin said. "David is going to be a good placeholder, but he'll be our deputy once we find someone to take the director's position."
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