Assessing Human Rights Impacts of the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup
As the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup comes to a close, the Sport & Rights Alliance and Human Rights Watch invite you to a 60-minute, hybrid press briefing at the Human Rights Watch Offices in New York City on Thursday, July 16, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. EST // 5:00 p.m. CEST.
The 2026 Men’s World Cup has highlighted the joy and power of fans and communities coming together to celebrate, connect, and inspire. But just beyond the spotlight, the Trump administration’s anti-human rights policies have continued to harm thousands of immigrants, fans, journalists, and workers.
Though FIFA will try to frame this tournament as the safest, most inclusive, “greatest” World Cup ever, football’s governing body and its unaccountable leader Gianni Infantino did not confront the exclusionary and abusive policies of its US partner, the host of the majority of the World Cup games, and its final, to take place in New Jersey on Sunday, July 19, at 3 p.m.
Please contact hrwpress@hrw.org to join us on Thursday, July 16, to hear the human rights assessment of the 2026 Men’s World Cup.
What:
Press briefing for journalists covering FIFA and the 2026 Men’s World Cup, with a focus on the direct experiences of people impacted by FIFA’s failures to uphold human rights protections in the context of the 2026 World Cup. The Sport & Rights Alliance will additionally preview findings from its upcoming report on the human rights abuses surrounding the 2026 World Cup.
The briefing will be held in English.
Who:
- Jules Boykoff, author of Red Card: The 2026 World Cup, Sportswashing, and the FIFA Greed Machine, professor at Pacific University
- Gypsy Guillen Kaiser, Chief Global Affairs Officer, Committee to Protect Journalists
- Daniel Noroña, Americas Advocacy Director, Amnesty International USA
- Ronan Evain, Executive Director, Football Supporters Europe
- Lily Dong Li Rosengard, Senior Specialist: Gender Identity, Gender Expression and Sex Characteristics, ILGA World
- Andrea Florence, Executive Director, Sport & Rights Alliance
- Minky Worden (moderator), Director of Global Initiatives, Human Rights Watch
When: Thursday, July 16, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. EST // 5:00 p.m. CEST
To attend, please email: hrwpress@hrw.org
