The Trump administration has announced a $500 million initiative to help state and local governments develop anti-drone defenses ahead of next summer’s FIFA World Cup. It is part of a broader effort to secure U.S. skies against what officials describe as a growing aerial threat.
The funds, drawn from the Department of Homeland Security‘s budget under the One Big Beautiful Bill enacted in July, will support the 11 American host cities preparing for 104 matches across the United States.
The administration also plans to extend resources nationwide to safeguard other major events, including the country’s 250th anniversary celebrations and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, as Politico reported.
Andrew Giuliani, director of the White House’s FIFA World Cup 2026 Task Force, said the initiative will give local authorities tools to detect and disable unauthorized drones using jamming or remote-control technology. “Everybody from the governors to the police commissioners to the stadium security officers say this is something they need in order to protect the World Cup sites,” Giuliani told POLITICO.
Sebastian Gorka, senior director for counterterrorism at the National Security Council, echoed the sentiment:
“Drones are a disruptive technology. They have an amazing potential for both good and ill,” We will increase the enforcement of current laws to deter two types of individuals: evildoers and idiots — the clueless and the careless”
The administration’s approach includes coordination with Canada and Mexico — the World Cup’s co-hosts — to align counter-drone policies despite differing legal frameworks.
The new funding also adds momentum to a congressional debate over whether local law enforcement should be authorized to intercept or disable drones. Currently, only federal agencies hold that authority, and a House bill to expand it has stalled. The administration is considering contingency measures that would allow the Justice Department to temporarily empower local officials to neutralize drones if Congress fails to act.
President Trump has tied the initiative to his broader security agenda for the World Cup. Speaking in the Oval Office last month, he said that the tournament “will be very secure” and warned he might move matches from cities that “don’t cooperate” with the federal government. “If I think it’s not safe, we’re going to move it out of that city,” he said.
The 2026 World Cup, co-hosted by the United States, Mexico, and Canada, will begin next June.
Originally published on Latin Times
