FIFA announces new fast-track visa system for 2026 World Cup - but entry isn't guaranteed

Martin Macdonald

• 18 Nov 2025 08:01 CST
• 4 min read

Nieuws

FIFA president Gianni Infantino and USA president Donald Trump have announced a new fast track 'FIFA PASS' system that will allow World Cup match ticket holders to be given priority visa appointments.

The 2026 World Cup will take place across Canada, Mexico and the United States. The USA, in particular, has extremely strict rules on entry to the country at the moment which presents a logistical issue for the millions of football fans set to travel to North America next summer.

Visa appointment can take up to a year to be scheduled, but the new system puts ticket holders to the front of the line and appointments can now be gained in around two months.

However, fans will still be subject to the same scrutiny as other would-be travellers.

“Your ticket is not a visa. It doesn’t guarantee admission to the US,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said.

“It guarantees you an expedited appointment. You’re still going to go through the same vetting. We’re going to do the same vetting as anybody else would get. The only difference here is we’re moving them up in the queue.”

Most of the tickets sold for the World Cup so far have gone to Mexicans, Canadians and Americans, but FIFA has confirmed that fans from 212 other countries have also purchased tickets.

Even if these fans have a valid match ticket, they are not guaranteed entry into the United States.

Rubio has confirmed that some embassies have doubled their staff, while 400 new consulate officers have been employed to deal with the demand.

In 80% of countries, the wait for a visa appointment has slashed to 60 days from one year.

Trump given permission to move World Cup matches

FIFA have confirmed that Trump will be allowed to move the location of some World Cup matches if he has safety concerns over the city.

Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New York/New Jersey, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Seattle will host games next year, but Trump previously suggested that he could 'move' games if any of the host cities are deemed 'unsafe' amid continuous political tension in the country.

The cities that are being threatened with this action are ones under Democratic control. Trump is a Republican.

Speaking to reporters at the Oval Office last month, Trump said: "It will be safe for the World Cup. If I think it isn't safe, we'll move it into a different city."

He also added that he could take the same measures for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.

"If any city we think is going to be even a little bit dangerous for the World Cup, or for the Olympics, but for the World Cup in particular, because they're playing in so many cities, we won't allow it to go. We'll move it around a little bit."

These comments have given rise to questions about whether the US president has the authority to even make such a massive change, considering that the ability to host World Cup games is a huge source of pride - and a logistical challenge - for cities.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino, Trump's friend, has now apparently given the president this authority.

When asked about the newly elected democratic socialist mayor of Seattle, Katie Wilson, Trump said: “If we think there’s going to be the sign of any trouble, I would ask Gianni to move that to a different city … So if we think there’s a problem in Seattle where you have a very very Liberal/communist mayor … we’ll say ‘Gianni, can I say we will move?’ I don’t think you’re gonna have this problem. But we’re gonna move the event to someplace where it’s going to be appreciated and safe.”

Infantino responded, while standing next to Trump: “Yeah, I think safety and security is the number one priority for a successful World Cup. We are working together, we have a task force for this and we must ensure that all fans coming from abroad, being here they can experience a celebration of coming together of the sport and this goes only with 100 per cent safety."