ICE at – DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin says ICE will focus on security—counterfeit and serious-crime threats—at the FIFA World Cup, not mass arrests.
A clear signal about what the public should expect at the FIFA World Cup: DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said ICE arrests are not off the table, but the agency will not be deployed to “round up” non-citizens at the major U.S. sporting event.
Speaking to CBS News in an exclusive interview. Mullin stressed that Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s role at the tournament would align with DHS’s broader enforcement mission. not mass immigration sweeps.. Asked whether he could assure Americans that ICE’s purpose would be security rather than arresting undocumented migrants. he pointed to ICE’s remit as enforcing U.S.. customs and related laws.. He cited risks commonly associated with large public events. including counterfeit products and counterfeit tickets. and said those are the kinds of issues DHS components are prepared to address.
Mullin argued that ICE’s presence at high-profile venues is not new. noting that the agency has shown up at other major sporting events. including the Super Bowl.. He said the current controversy has been driven largely by how “media and the public” have characterized ICE. which he linked to political framing from Democrats.
Still, Mullin acknowledged that law enforcement encounters can occur in real time when agencies target serious threats.. He said that at sporting events, agents may come across people wanted for murder, drug trafficking, or other serious crimes.. He also said individuals flagged internationally through Interpol could be among the targets.. In that sense. his position left room for enforcement actions that are tied to specific criminal or security concerns rather than immigration status alone.
Pressed further on whether the World Cup mission would exclude immigration enforcement entirely. Mullin did not rule it out in absolute terms.. He said ICE “always says” it is conducting immigration enforcement, and that it will continue to do its job.. But he emphasized a narrower aim for the tournament: agents would not be there for the “solely” stated purpose of immigration arrests. and he reiterated that the intent would be to look for “the worst of the worst. ” not to conduct mass detentions.
The World Cup is expected to become a major operational priority for DHS and its components.. The tournament will feature dozens of international teams across 11 American cities, drawing upward of a million foreign visitors.. In Mullin’s framing, the security challenge includes the protection of large crowds and high-volume venues, not only immigration enforcement.
ICE’s leadership situation is also in flux heading into the event.. Mullin said acting ICE Director Todd Lyons is set to leave federal government service at the end of this month. with David Venturella stepping in as interim head.. Mullin said Venturella. a longtime immigration official who previously worked for a for-profit prison company. would run ICE while DHS searches for a permanent director.. He also said the agency has not had a Senate-confirmed director in years. and he described Venturella as a “good placeholder” who will return to a deputy role once a permanent director is selected.
The World Cup focus lands amid broader internal and political turbulence for DHS.. Mullin’s remarks came nearly two months after he took over the department.. He pointed to months of upheaval. including DHS’s longest shutdown in history. the departure of former Secretary Kristi Noem. and the ensuing controversy over the Trump administration’s approach to immigration enforcement following the deaths of two U.S.. citizens in Minneapolis.
Just two weeks before the interview. Mullin said DHS emerged from that shutdown—an interruption that exposed how fragile operations can become when funding stalls.. The dispute centered on Congress, where Democrats pushed for reforms to DHS’s immigration-focused agencies.. Funding lapsed in mid-February, and lawmakers later approved funding for DHS except for ICE and Border Patrol until September.
That interim funding set up a continuing political fight: Congressional Republicans are working to separately fund ICE and Border Patrol through fiscal year 2029 without Democratic votes.. Mullin described the impact of the 76-day shutdown as severe and broad-based.. He said hundreds of TSA officers were left without pay. employees were furloughed. and Coast Guard facilities faced electricity and water shutoffs due to unpaid bills.. He also said DHS offices ran short on basic supplies, down to items like paper clips.
Mullin warned that another shutdown would not just damage morale and operations—it would also create national security risk.. He said DHS would still attempt to deliver on its missions, but that the consequences would compound over time.. Near the end of the shutdown. he said DHS could no longer operate proactively. describing an unavoidable choice among competing priorities when staffing and resources are strained.
He also pointed to workforce losses as a major driver of reduced capacity.. Mullin said CISA—the cybersecurity and infrastructure security agency—lost 1. 100 people over the past year. and TSA lost 8.6% of its workforce.. He emphasized that TSA’s responsibilities extend beyond airport security into areas such as pipelines and infrastructure systems. and that those responsibilities intersect with how DHS prepares for events like the World Cup. with its 11 venues.
Hurricanes and public health are the other major pressures on DHS in the coming months.. Mullin said DHS is receiving daily updates on a hantavirus outbreak linked to a Dutch-flagged cruise ship and is coordinating with the White House and Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F.. Kennedy Jr.. He urged Americans not to panic, drawing a direct distinction between the outbreak and the COVID-19 pandemic.
“This is not COVID,” he said, adding that DHS is taking the threat seriously while still arguing that the public should not be afraid. The contrast was central to his message: the department is treating the outbreak as an urgent, specific public health event rather than a repeat of the COVID crisis.
As hurricane season begins June 1, Mullin shifted to disaster readiness and the role of FEMA and states.. He said governors should not expect FEMA to “vanish,” and described a renewed emphasis on state recovery as storms approach.. He referenced proposals floated by the Trump administration. including efforts to shrink FEMA or eliminate it. and a recent council appointed by the president that discussed a potential overhaul of the agency toward a leaner federal posture that shifts more responsibility to states.
Mullin said the basic reality of disaster response is shared responsibility.. He argued that states understand they have obligations too. and that the federal government cannot be the answer to every local need.. He said FEMA is still continuing public assistance work. while stressing that FEMA was never designed to handle all stages of recovery without state involvement.
Pressed on whether FEMA will show up in hurricane zones where residents fear the agency will not be there, Mullin was emphatic: “We’re still going to show up. Absolutely we’re going to show up.”
He praised Florida’s disaster approach, citing Gov.. Ron DeSantis and Florida Division of Emergency Management Executive Director Kevin Guthrie as examples of effective state response.. Mullin said Florida could be a model for other states. framing state-led preparation and coordination as the key to limiting damage and speeding recovery.
In his closing remarks. he returned to the central message: governments at every level have roles. but the federal government cannot shoulder every problem alone.. “We’re there to help you get started again on your very. very worst day. ” he said. offering a reminder that disaster response depends on coordination as much as it depends on federal resources.
Whether in the lead-up to the World Cup. during hurricane season. or amid public health threats. Mullin’s interview painted a picture of DHS operating across multiple fronts while trying to manage the consequences of staffing losses and the political uncertainty that has repeatedly reshaped the department’s priorities.
Markwayne Mullin ICE DHS FIFA World Cup security immigration enforcement FEMA hurricane season hantavirus outbreak
sure they wont lol
wait so ICE is gonna be at the World Cup checking for fake tickets?? thats actually kinda weird i thought they only did like deportation stuff. my cousin got a fake ticket at a concert once so i guess i get it but still feels like overkill sending ICE for that
this is exactly what they said before the Super Bowl too and then people were getting stopped left and right in the parking lots, my buddy told me he saw it happen with his own eyes. they always say one thing and do another and people just keep believing them every single time. Mullin is just trying to calm people down before the tournament starts so nobody boycotts it or whatever. the whole point is to get people comfortable and then they do what they were always gonna do anyway. not saying all of ICE is bad but come on man dont be naive about this stuff
honestly i dont even understand why DHS has to be involved at all isnt the World Cup run by FIFA which is like a foreign organization so why is our government even in charge of security over there, seems like overreach to me or something