Kristi Noem blames Democrats for shutdown holding up $625m in World Cup funding

Kristi Noem, the US homeland security secretary, replied forcefully on Thursday to concerns about a holdup of federal funding for this summer’s World Cup, confirming that “no funds have been awarded yet” in a post on X. About $625m in grants administered by the Federal Emergency Management Authority (Fema) were authorized last summer and set to be distributed to US host cities to aid with security and planning for the tournament, which will be co-hosted by the US, Canada and Mexico.

Noem’s comments follow congressional testimony earlier this week by host city officials who expressed concern that they may not have time to adequately prepare for the tournament if they don’t receive the funds in short order.

On Thursday, Noem said the ongoing partial government shutdown – which directly affects Fema – is the reason for the holdup, placing the blame on Democratic senators. The Department of Homeland Security, which includes Fema, has been unfunded since 13 February after lawmakers failed to approve the agency’s appropriations bill. Senate Democrats have said the agency will remain unfunded until the Trump administration places new restrictions on immigration and enforcement operations after a pair of fatal shootings by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in Minneapolis last month.

“Fema was in the final stages of reviewing applications to ensure proper oversight when Democrats shut down the government putting significant portions of the Fema staff on administrative leave,” Noem wrote in her post. “No funds have been awarded yet under the Fifa World Cup grant program. The longer DHS goes without funding, the less prepared our nation will be for threats at the Fifa World Cup and America 250.”

Noem’s statement drew sharp pushback from Nellie Pou, the Democratic congresswoman from New Jersey who serves as the ranking member of the House homeland security taskforce on enhancing security for special events. Pou had previously voiced her concerns at the DHS committee hearing earlier this week.

“This is simply not true,” Pou wrote on X. “World Cup security funding was enacted into law last summer and these matches have been scheduled for years. DHS’ own notice of funding opportunity of this grant program listed the anticipated award date as ‘no later than January 30, 2026.’ Well before the funding impasse. It’s time for DHS to do its job.”

Pou, whose congressional district includes MetLife Stadium – which will host the World Cup final – was joined in concern by officials representing a pair of other World Cup host cities, Miami and Kansas City. In their testimony, those officials both expressed worry that they may have to cancel events, including fan festivals, if funding isn’t soon released.

“We are quickly approaching [our deadline],” testified Raymond Martinez, the chief operating officer of the Miami host committee. “We are 107 days out from the tournament, but more importantly we are about 70-something days out from starting to build the fan fest. These decisions have to be made, generously, within the next 30 days. Our local agencies are very anxious. Without receiving this money, it would be catastrophic for our planning and coordination.”

Congress and the White House have made no visible progress on ending the funding impasse. On Tuesday, a Senate vote failed to garner the 60 votes needed to advance a funding bill. Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader, criticized Republican lawmakers after the vote, saying they hadn’t made meaningful attempts to negotiate and had not “budged on any key issues”.