Padilla, Bipartisan Group of Colleagues Call on President Biden to Create Global Sporting Task Force
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) joined a bipartisan group of 20 Senators in calling on President Biden to establish a White House Task Force on Global Sporting Events in preparation for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which will include matches held in California, the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic and Paralympic Games, the 2031 Rugby World Cup, and the 2034 Salt Lake City Olympic and Paralympic Games. The Task Force would oversee the preparation and security of the games, including efforts to improve international visa processing.
“The United States will host a number of major international sporting events over the next decade, including the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the 2028 and 2034 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and the 2031 Rugby World Cup,” wrote the Senators. “We urge the White House to establish a White House Task Force on Global Sporting Events to oversee preparation and securing the games, specifically through international visa processing, security scenario training, incident response, transportation, diplomatic security, intelligence gathering and dissemination, and securing critical protective assets.”
“To ensure the success of these events, preparations must be made to facilitate smooth and secure travel to the United States for our international guests,” the Senators continued. “Similarly, the success of these events are dependent on the ability of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to work together to ensure the safety of the games and, if necessary, respond to critical incidents.”
The letter was led by Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Jerry Moran (R-KS), co-chairs of the Senate Travel and Tourism Caucus, and also signed by Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Susan Collins (R-ME), Ron Wyden (D-OR), James Lankford (R-OK), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), Michael Bennet (D-CO), John Boozman (R-AK), Mitt Romney (R-UT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Jon Ossoff (D-GA), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Raphael Warnock (D-GA), Tina Smith (D-MN), Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH).
The full text of the letter is available here and below:
Dear President Biden,
As you know, the United States will host a number of major international sporting events over the next decade, including the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the 2028 and 2034 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and the 2031 Rugby World Cup. These events have the potential to deliver tremendous economic and diplomatic benefits for our nation. We urge the White House to establish a White House Task Force on Global Sporting Events to oversee preparation and securing the games, specifically through international visa processing, security scenario training, incident response, transportation, diplomatic security, intelligence gathering and dissemination, and securing critical protective assets.
Major global sporting events are opportunities to strengthen our nation’s economy and demonstrate America’s leadership on the world stage. The 2026 FIFA World Cup, which will be the largest sporting event in U.S. history and held across Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New York New Jersey, Philadelphia, San Francisco Bay Area, and Seattle, will attract more than 5 million international visitors and is expected to generate $5 billion in economic activity. Similarly, the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games are expected to generate another $5 billion in economic activity, while attracting millions of visitors from all over the world.
To ensure the success of these events, preparations must be made to facilitate smooth and secure travel to the United States for our international guests. One challenge that must be an immediate and top priority is streamlining interview wait times for visitor visas. Currently, wait times for visitor visa interviews, particularly for first-time applicants, remain unacceptably high in many countries. As of June 2024, in the largest non-Visa Waiver Program countries, average interview wait times were nearly 300 days, with some locations reaching nearly two years. These wait times must be lowered in advance of these global sporting events. Consistent with the goals set by previous administrations, we encourage your Administration to target wait times of fewer than 31 days for 80 percent of applicants by the end of 2025.
Similarly, the success of these events are dependent on the ability of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to work together to ensure the safety of the games and, if necessary, respond to critical incidents. As we saw with the Centennial Olympic Park Bombing during the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, major sporting events pose an elevated risk for terrorist attacks, and require heightened precautions and public safety presence. As we prepare for these upcoming events, a White House Task Force on Global Sporting Events could facilitate the interagency planning necessary to keep participants and visitors safe.
The creation of a White House Task Force on Global Sporting Events would help lead and coordinate federal efforts to address these and other concerns critical to the success of these marquee events. There is ample precedent for establishing such a task force for large-scale public events. In fact, previous administrations created these task forces years before the start of the event itself. For example, in 1998, then-President Clinton announced “the creation of the White House Task Force on the 2002 Olympic and Paralympic Games.” Official federal government preparation for the 1994 FIFA World Cup began in June 1987 with Congress passing S.J. Res. 175 to provide support to meet the requirements of a host country.
We thank your administration for efforts already underway to prepare for the 2026 World Cup and the 2028 and 2034 Olympic and Paralympic Games and appreciate your attention to ensuring the success of these historic events. We stand ready to work with your administration in any capacity to achieve our shared goals.