Trump's Travel Ban Likely Won't Impact World Cup or Olympic Athletes, Report Shows

President Donald Trump’s recent travel restrictions might prevent supporters from 19 listed countries from watching their athletes participate in major global sports events over the coming years, although the competitions themselves will remain unaffected.

The president's announcement doesn’t seem to significantly affect plans for the upcoming World Cup in 2028, the Summer Olympics of the same year, or other key global sports events set during his next term. People involved such as athletes, trainers, support personnel, and close relatives can continue to travel into the country without issues.

But fans from those nations now face an even more uphill battle to see games in person, despite members of the Trump administration encouraging the world to come to the US for these global events.

Trump’s travel ban fully restricts travel from Afghanistan; Myanmar, also known as Burma; Chad; Republic of the Congo; Equatorial Guinea; Eritrea; Haiti; Iran; Libya; Somalia; Sudan; and Yemen. There are partial restrictions for Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.

However, exceptions are carved out in the proclamation for athletes, coaches, important staffers, and immediate family for athletes traveling to the US for the World Cup, Olympics, and “other major sporting event as determined by the Secretary of State.”

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The declaration further notes that individuals with current visas to enter the United States will not have their visas canceled as a result of the travel restrictions.

This indicates that the Iranian national team—which has secured a spot in the 2026 World Cup—will participate in the event. Similarly, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Libya, Burundi, Venezuela, Cuba, and Haiti could join if their respective teams manage to qualify.

These countries continue their battle for a spot in the World Cup as the lineup for the event becomes more defined.

The Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Chad, Togo, and Somalia seem unlikely candidates for World Cup qualification. Meanwhile, Afghanistan, Laos, Myanmar, Yemen, and Turkmenistan have been ruled out of contention.

While the teams, their staffs, and their immediate family would be able to travel to the US for the tournament, the travel ban would likely keep most of their fans from coming into the country for any games.

Given that the tournament is co-hosted by the United States, Mexico, and Canada, supporters from these countries might still manage to attend matches played in Mexico or Canada to root for their respective national teams.

With qualification still ongoing, fans won’t know if that will happen for quite some time — qualification for the tournament doesn’t wrap up until later this year, and the drawing of teams into groups won’t happen until then.

The US visa process for fans of the affected nations is already arduous, and even without a ban in place, approvals would take time.

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Concerns have arisen regarding the potential delays in obtaining visas for fans wishing to attend the World Cup in the United States. Currently, forty-two nations participate in the U.S. visa waiver program, allowing their residents to remain in the country for up to 90 days without needing an official visa.

Some of the countries most synonymous with the men’s World Cup — defending champion Argentina, five-time winner Brazil, Colombia, Uruguay, and even tournament co-host Mexico — are not part of that program.

While the Trump administration has promised to speed up visa approvals for fans looking to cheer on their teams, the lengthy review process for nations not in the visa waiver program might have kept fans from the 19 nations affected by the proclamation from coming to the US anyway.

When asked specifically about whether fans from Iran and other affected nations would be given exemption from the travel ban for the World Cup, State Department principal deputy spokesman Thomas Pigott demurred.

“Both people that are coming and Americans would hope that we can have confidence that when people come to United States, when they come, that they are properly vetted,” Pigott told reporters on Thursday.

“I think this goes to the exact same consideration. I think this is part of what it means to host an event of this magnitude, to make sure that we can have that confidence. And again, we’re in constant communication with countries about ways that we can see the vetting process we need to see, have that collaboration, make sure that we’re having those security concerns addressed.”

In response to CNN Sports’ question on whether fans should expect to not be able to come to the US for the World Cup or Olympics, a State Department spokesperson said, “We are implementing the President’s directive to secure U.S. borders and protect American communities and citizens. We are not going to get into hypotheticals or specific cases about application of the Proclamation.”

Athletes already in the US, such as the many Venezuelans and Cubans who play in Major League Baseball, are exempted from the travel ban.

When asked about these athletes, the White House pointed toward the proclamation’s section stating, “no immigrant or nonimmigrant visa issued before the applicable effective date of this proclamation shall be revoked pursuant to this proclamation.”

Numerous international sportspeople competing in the United States utilize the P-1A visa, which remains effective for half a decade.

Some uncertainties remain regarding the impact of the travel ban on international sports competitions hosted in the United States. Although the World Cup and Olympics are explicitly mentioned in the executive order, other events such as soccer’s Gold Cup or athletics championships have not been addressed directly.

CNN has contacted the State Department seeking further details on how the Secretary of State will define a significant sports competition and the schedule for making such a determination.

The Trump administration has made it clear that it wants foreign visitors to come to the US for the World Cup and Olympics, but immigration concerns remain top of mind.

Vice President JD Vance stated at the inaugural session of the White House’s World Cup task force last month, "We expect guests from nearly 100 nations. We welcome their presence and hope they will join in celebrating and watching the games. However, once the event concludes, these visitors must return home; otherwise, they'll need to speak with Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem."

Noem’s department includes Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), responsible for deportations out of the US.

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The organizers of LA 2028 stated during a press briefing on Thursday that they have confidence the travel restrictions will not impact the Summer Olympics and expressed their gratitude towards the federal government for acknowledging the significance of the event.

“It was very clear in the directive that the Olympics require special consideration and I actually want to thank the federal government for recognizing that,” LA28 Chairman and President Casey Wasserman said, according to the Associated Press.

“It’s very clear that the federal government understands that that’s an environment that they will be accommodating and provide for,” he said. “We have great confidence that that will only continue. It has been the case to date and it will certainly be the case going forward through the games.”

The US Travel Association said in a statement that, while the proportion of annual foreign visitors affected by the ban is just 0.5%, the major global events taking place in the US over the next few years represent an opportunity to attract new visitors.

“The travel industry supports policies that make the United States both secure and welcoming. In some instances, this is a challenging balance to achieve, and we respect the administration’s efforts,” the association told CNN Sports in a statement.

(CNN)

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