FIFA football matches in Canada spawn 175 asylum requests

Foreign visitors to the recent FIFA World Cup matches in Canada have made 175 asylum claims, media reported Thursday.

Canadian Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) issued just over 26,000 visas to those from other countries attending the 13 matches held in Toronto and Vancouver earlier this month and in June.

It is not unusual for foreign sports team members or support staff to apply for asylum, and in fact some countries that anticipate the move will often not allow a team to participate in tournaments abroad.

Eritrea’s football federation banned its team from the World Cup because of concerns that the team members would apply for asylum, the Globe and Mail newspaper reported.

“As of July 20, 2026, of the 26,111 individuals with prior FIFA-related approved temporary residence applications, 175 people later submitted asylum claims,” IRCC said in a statement to the newspaper. “It is important to note that this data only includes applicants who flagged ‘FIFA World Cup 26′ in their temporary-residence applications.”

A request to learn the breakdown of the 175 claims, how many were made by players and the number of claims by support staff, was declined.

A breakdown of asylum applications by visitor visas includes 25 from China, 15 Egyptians, 25 from Ghana, 15 Colombians, 10 Senegalese, five Ecuadorians, 10 from Bangladesh, 10 Nigerians and five each from Burundi, Nepal and Pakistan.

This, despite the IRCC declaring that should there be a fear of FIFA ticket holders not returning to their country, they could be stopped from entering Canada.