London: A pair of rights groups urged corporate sponsors of the FIFA World Cup to demand that US federal authorities refrain from launching immigration enforcement operations at all World Cup events and venues.

According to Anadolu Agency, Human Rights Watch and the Sport and Rights Alliance are calling for an "ICE truce" as the Trump administration plans to deploy Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents at World Cup matches and events. Although officials have stated that the agents would not be conducting large-scale raids, there are growing concerns about the potential chilling effect on fans and workers at the World Cup.

Minky Worden, a senior official at Human Rights Watch, emphasized that FIFA's corporate sponsors invest billions of dollars to associate with "the beautiful game," rather than the US government's severe immigration policies. Worden called on World Cup sponsors and partners to advocate for an ICE truce to ensure the tournament remains untarnished by the administration's immigration tactics.

Earlier this year, a coalition of groups reached out to 19 World Cup sponsors. Six companies-Adidas, Coca-Cola, Lenovo, McDonald's, Unilever, and Visa-responded but did not explicitly support the call for an ICE truce, as reported by Human Rights Watch. Instead, these companies mentioned their ongoing engagement with FIFA on human rights concerns.

McDonald's, in a letter shared by Human Rights Watch, stated that they "routinely and regularly engage with FIFA and relevant stakeholders on human rights risks associated with its tournaments, including the 2026 FIFA World Cup."