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Spectator attendance at the 2026 FIFA World Cup has surpassed 6.5 million, more than the combined total of the previous two tournaments, the executive director of the White House Task Force on the FIFA World Cup 2026 said.
Andrew Giuliani made the comments during a joint news conference with Mora Namdar, deputy assistant secretary of state for consular affairs, in New York ahead of Sunday's World Cup final, where the pair addressed security measures in place in and around the city.
"We are wrapping up the highest-attendance, most-watched, safest and most successful World Cup in history," Giuliani said, adding that more than 6.5 million people have watched matches, a figure he said tops the combined attendance of the previous two tournaments.
Giuliani said the United States is on pace to double the attendance record set at the 1994 World Cup, also hosted in the country, with stadium occupancy ranging between 90% and 97% throughout the tournament.
He said roughly 8 million fans also attended FIFA Fan Festivals across the country, pointing to it as further evidence of the scale of interest in the tournament.
Giuliani said the World Cup has contributed billions of dollars to the U.S. economy, with sales in cities hosting team training camps rising by up to tenfold compared with normal days.
On security cooperation, Giuliani said the FBI hosted an International Police Cooperation Center that brought together federal agents and law enforcement officers from 16 host cities across North America, including co-hosts Mexico and Canada, as well as representatives from 414 agencies.
Ahead of the final, Giuliani detailed measures restricting drone flights around stadiums. He said the federal government seized more than 700 drones flying in restricted airspace near stadiums and fan festivals, while more than 1,600 drones were detected over the past 36 days.
President Donald Trump is expected to attend the final, which will be played in New Jersey. Giuliani advised fans attending the match to secure their tickets in advance and arrive at the stadium early.
Namdar said the State Department has received visa applications from more than 80% of countries worldwide for the World Cup, adding that additional staff and budget were allocated to speed up the process. She said applications have been processed within 60 days.
"We deployed more than 680 additional consular staff worldwide to meet the demand for visa appointments during this peak period," Namdar said, noting that the effort opened more than 2 million additional appointment slots.
Namdar said the additional staffing was aimed not only at this year's tournament but also at future events the U.S. is set to host, including the Women's World Cup and the Olympics.
She said the United States has shown it can safely and hospitably host large numbers of fans from around the world in a short period, calling the tournament an important reference point for future international sporting events.
Giuliani and Namdar's remarks came two days before the tournament's closing match, as authorities in the New York area finalize security arrangements for the expected influx of fans ahead of the final.
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