The Trump administration has identified a host of athletic competitions it classifies as “major sporting events,” allowing athletes and coaches to travel to the United States despite a broad visa ban affecting nearly 40 countries beyond football’s 2026 World Cup and the 2028 Olympic Games.
In a cable sent Wednesday to U.S. embassies and consulates worldwide, the State Department said athletes, coaches and support staff for the World Cup, the Olympics and events sanctioned or run by a wide range of collegiate and professional sports leagues and associations would be exempt from the full and partial travel bans imposed on citizens of 39 countries and the Palestinian Authority.
The cable, however, stressed that the exemptions are narrow. Foreign spectators, media and corporate sponsors seeking to attend the same events would still be barred unless they qualify for another exemption.
“Only a small subset of travelers for the World Cup, Olympics and Paralympics, and other major sporting events will qualify for the exception,” the State Department said.
President Donald Trump’s administration has issued a series of immigration and travel bans as well as other visa restrictions as part of ongoing efforts to tighten U.S. entry standards for foreigners. At the same time, the administration has sought to ensure that athletes and coaches are able to attend major sporting events in the U.S.
Trump’s Dec. 16 proclamation banning the issuance of visas to the 39 countries and the Palestinian Authority carved out an exception for athletes and staff competing in the World Cup, the Olympics and other major sporting events. It delegated a decision on which other sporting events would be covered to Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Wednesday’s cable lists covered events, including “all competitions and qualifying events” for the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Pan-American Games and Parapan American Games; events hosted, sanctioned or recognized by a U.S. national governing body; and all competitions and qualifying events for the Special Olympics. It also covers official events and competitions hosted or endorsed by FIFA, soccer’s governing body, or its confederations.
The exemption also will cover official events and competitions hosted by the International Military Sports Council, the International University Sports Federation and the National Collegiate Athletic Association, as well as those hosted or endorsed by U.S. professional sports leagues such as the National Football League, the National Basketball Association and Women’s National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball, Little League, the National Hockey League, the Professional Women’s Hockey League, NASCAR, Formula 1, the Professional Golfers’ Association, the Ladies Professional Golf Association, LIV Golf, Major League Rugby, Major League Soccer, World Wrestling Entertainment, Ultimate Fighting Championship and All Elite Wrestling.
The cable said other events and leagues could be added to the list.
Of the 39 countries, a full travel ban applies to Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Laos, Libya, Mali, Myanmar, Niger, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, Syria and Yemen, as well as people with Palestinian Authority-issued passports. A partial ban is in place for citizens of Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Burundi, Cuba, Dominica, Gabon, Gambia, Ivory Coast, Malawi, Mauritania, Senegal, Tanzania, Tonga, Togo, Venezuela, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
