MPs urge Fifa to rethink US role after Trump’s Venezuela operation

January 15, 2026 Oliver Obel

As the United States prepares to host some of the world’s largest sporting events, its recent foreign policy actions are prompting renewed questions about how far global sports bodies can, or should, separate competition from geopolitics.

A group of UK MPs has now entered that debate, urging organisations such as Fifa to reassess their relationship with host nations whose conduct they believe may breach international law.

Parliamentary motion targets sporting legitimacy

Twenty-three MPs from Labour, the Liberal Democrats, the Green Party and Plaid Cymru have tabled a motion in parliament calling on Fifa to consider whether the US should continue to participate in, or host, major international tournaments. The MPs argue that global sporting events risk conferring legitimacy on states accused of serious legal violations.

The motion was prompted by a US operation in Caracas earlier this month in which Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro was captured. The MPs describe the action as an unlawful intervention in the affairs of a sovereign country and accuse Washington of setting a dangerous precedent.

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They also raise concerns about a pattern of aggressive rhetoric from senior US officials, pointing to threats directed at countries including Denmark, Colombia and Cuba. In their view, such behaviour weakens the rules-based international order that sporting bodies often claim to uphold.

US response and international reaction

The White House has previously defended the Caracas operation as a law-enforcement action, arguing that Maduro is an illegitimate leader linked to drug trafficking and terrorism. President Donald Trump has since said the US will assume control over Venezuela and its oil resources.

Maduro has rejected that account, describing himself as a prisoner of war. The operation drew sharp criticism at an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council, where UN Secretary General António Guterres said he was “deeply concerned that rules of international law have not been respected”.

Trump has also warned Cuba to strike a deal over Venezuelan oil exports, suggested military action against Colombia, and accused Mexico of failing to curb drug trafficking comments that have heightened tensions across the region. Mexico’s president has publicly ruled out any US military presence on Mexican soil.

Sporting bodies hold the line on neutrality

Fifa declined to comment on the MPs’ motion and has given no indication that it plans to revisit the US’s status as a World Cup host, despite criticism of the close relationship between Trump and Fifa president Gianni Infantino.

Brian Leishman, one of the MPs backing the motion, told the Daily Mirror that sports bodies should apply the same standards consistently. “What we’ve seen is a breach of international law,” he said, adding that similar actions by other states had previously led to sanctions.

Fifa has long argued that it is not equipped to resolve geopolitical disputes, a position echoed by the International Olympic Committee. In a statement, the IOC said it could not involve itself directly in political conflicts, describing such matters as outside its remit.

A growing test for global sport

John Zerafa, an adviser to governments and cities bidding to host major events, said the situation risks becoming a serious challenge for sports institutions that emphasise neutrality while operating in an increasingly unstable global environment.

With the World Cup and Olympics drawing closer, he warned that further escalation could force sporting bodies to confront difficult questions about sovereignty, consistency and credibility.

For now, organisers insist that sport should remain a unifying force. But as international tensions rise, maintaining that separation may become harder to sustain.

Sources: BBC Sport, Daily Mirror