by NJABULO MKHIZE / LAURA PEREIRA / AHMED HUSSAIN / HAOYU ZHANG
SAO PAULO, (CAJ News) -AS preparations accelerate for the forthcoming FIFA World Cup in the United States, a growing chorus of voices from Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America is urging a boycott of matches hosted on American soil.
For many fans across the Global South, football is inseparable from questions of dignity, mobility, and safety.
Activists argue that the tournament risks exposing visiting supporters to immigration enforcement practices they describe as hostile, racialized, and unpredictable, while rewarding a host nation they accuse of disregarding international human-rights norms.
African fan associations and civil-society groups point to the history of U.S immigration enforcement under agencies such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
They recall widely reported cases of family separations and aggressive ongoing raids, warning that visitors who “look foreign” could be questioned or detained despite holding valid documents.
The fear, campaigners say, is not hypothetical. On X and Facebook, African users have shared stories of relatives allegedly separated from children or held for prolonged periods while their papers were scrutinized.
“A World Cup should feel like a festival, not a risk assessment,” reads one widely circulated post.
From Latin America, the anxiety is even sharper. Supporter networks say memories of past U.S. immigration crackdowns remain fresh, particularly for Venezuelan, Central American, and Caribbean fans.
Online campaigns stress that no visiting supporter should risk being “caught in the crossfire” of domestic security politics while traveling to celebrate football.
Hashtags urging national teams to reconsider participation have trended, with posts arguing that the promise of global unity rings hollow when mobility itself feels criminalized.
Middle Eastern and Asian commentators add a broader geopolitical layer to the boycott call.
They argue that the United States’ confrontational foreign-policy rhetoric, and its involvement in multiple international conflicts, undermine claims that the tournament will be a neutral sporting celebration.
In long opinion threads shared thousands of times, activists accuse Washington of projecting militarized power abroad while insisting that athletes and fans “keep politics out of sport.” For them, the contradiction is impossible to ignore.
Another flashpoint is Gaza. Across Africa and the wider Global South, football supporters have joined human-rights advocates in demanding accountability for Israel’s actions in the war.
Many posts argue that FIFA’s decision to ban Russia following the invasion of Ukraine, while allowing Israel to continue competing, reflects a double standard that devalues Palestinian lives.
The United States, accused by critics of supplying weapons to Israel, is therefore seen not as an impartial host but as complicit in the injustice.
“If rules apply to some and not others, then FIFA has already picked a side,” reads a statement shared by a pan-African supporters’ coalition on Facebook.
Calls for action are growing bolder. Some online voices urge national federations from Africa, Asia, and Latin America to withdraw entirely from U.S-hosted matches, while others advocate symbolic protests by players and fans.
African sports commentators note that boycotts have historical precedent, from apartheid-era South Africa to more recent athlete-led justice movements.
The argument, they emphasize, is not anti-football, but pro-humanity.
Ultimately, this debate forces FIFA into uncomfortable territory.
The organization insists that football can bridge divides, yet its hosting choices inevitably reflect political realities.
For millions across the Global South, the question is simple: can a World Cup truly belong to everyone if many fans feel unsafe, unwelcome, or morally compromised by attending?
Until those concerns are addressed with transparency and consistency, the call to boycott the U.S World Cup will continue to echo far beyond the pitch.
– CAJ News