Chaos at Copa America raises doubts over U.S. 2026 World Cup readiness

The Copa America soccer final between Argentina and Colombia on Sunday saw chaotic scenes at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami — and is raising questions about the United States’ preparedness to co-host the 2026 World Cup.

The stadium, home field of the NFL’s Miami Dolphins with a capacity of more than 65,000 spectators, was overwhelmed when non-ticketed fans rushed the gates, climbing through security railings and air vents to get in.

Facilities and barriers were damaged, ticketed fans were boxed out from their seats by non-paying crowds, and the game was ultimately delayed more than 80 minutes, ending after midnight with an Argentinian victory over Colombia. (A halftime show was also added this year in a first for the league, further extending the event.)

“It was, without a question, not just an embarrassment, it was absurd,” said Anjali Bal, Babson College associate professor of entertainment and sports marketing.

Miami-Dade Commissioner Oliver Gilbert said at a press conference Monday that law enforcement is working with promoters and the stadium to make sure the incident doesn’t happen again.

“We host big events. Well, I’ve never seen anything like I saw last night, and we’re not going to see that again,” Gilbert said.

A total of 27 arrests were made, including that of Colombia’s soccer federation president Ramón Jesurún and his son, who were accused of attacking three security guards who stopped them from accessing the field, according to the arrest form.

Miami-Dade Fire Rescue said it responded to a total of 120 incidents at the stadium and the surrounding area, 116 of which were for medical calls. 

“The only thing that is fortunate here is that nobody died, but a lot of people look to be in very difficult shape, and it was perfectly avoidable,” Lee Berke, CEO of LHB Sports, Entertainment & Media, told CNBC. 

The debacle quickly drew questions about the United States’ preparedness for major soccer events, just two years ahead of a global showcase.

The U.S. is set to host 78 out of the 104 World Cup matches as a co-host of the tournament in 2026, alongside Canada and Mexico. The tournament final is slated for MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, and Hard Rock Stadium, where the Copa final turned chaotic, will host seven games, including the third-place match.

Chief among the criticisms is what some say was a lack of security checkpoints and an outer perimeter to stop the flow of traffic into the stadium.

“I think the organizers of the tournament didn’t prepare properly for handling large-scale crowds to be funneled into the stadium,” Berke said.

The South American Football Confederation, CONMEBOL, blasted Hard Rock Stadium in a press release on Monday, saying stadium officials had failed to account for the safety recommendations the confederation made.

Hard Rock, for its part, said it “implemented, and in many cases exceeded, CONMEBOL’s security recommendations.” 

Although this isn’t the first Copa that the United States has hosted — the U.S. first took on hosting duties back in 2016 — for many, this championship was seen as a warm-up for the 2026 World Cup.

“Some of the fears are unfairly being placed on an event that will happen in two years, but that’s really the only nice thing I can say,” Bal said. “When you have this many problems at the dress rehearsal, that doesn’t bode well for the production.”

An estimated 5 million fans are expected to travel to the 16 host cities across the U.S., Canada and Mexico for the 38 days of the tournament, according to Sports Business Journal.

Berke said he thinks the United States is well equipped to handle that volume, and that FIFA will run the show well.

“This country has tremendous experience in event running; there’s probably no more skilled country on Earth, with the people in place, the organizations in place that know how to run games and keep fans safe,” Berke said. “If that expertise is tapped into, then I’m certain that the World Cup is going to be tremendously successful.”

Bal noted the mishaps in the Copa tournament could provide a road map to making the 2026 World Cup a success.

In addition to the final match security concerns, several American stadiums also came under fire for issues with the turf, which was installed in the American football stadiums that hosted the games ahead of the tournament. The coach of the Argentinian national team, Lionel Scaloni, told reporters at a post-match press conference last month that the fields were not in good condition and not apt for players.

“If we look at it as, we saw all of the problems and now we have teams who are going to deal with the turf and teams who are going to deal with the security … then I think you’re going to be able to fix that,” Bal said.