Some Visitors Who Came for the World Cup Later Sought Asylum; Applicants Include Citizens of Ghana, Colombia, Ecuador, Egypt, Kenya, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Several Other Countries
IRCC: Of 26,111 Approved FIFA-Related Temporary Residence Applications, 175 Individuals Later Filed Asylum Claims; All Cases Are Still Subject to Legal Review
Report by Mehboob Ali Shaikh
It has been revealed that some foreign nationals who travelled to Canada during the FIFA World Cup 2026 later submitted asylum claims after arriving in the country.
According to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), these individuals had identified FIFA World Cup 26 as the purpose of their travel when applying for temporary residence before coming to Canada.
Official figures show that 26,111 temporary residence applications referencing the FIFA World Cup 2026 were approved. Of those, 175 individuals had filed asylum claims in Canada as of July 20, 2026.
The figures indicate that the asylum claims represent approximately 0.67% of the approved FIFA-related applications. In other words, roughly one out of every 149 approved applicants later sought asylum, while more than 99% of those approved did not file an asylum claim.
According to IRCC, asylum claimants include citizens of several countries, including Ghana, Colombia , Ecuador , Egypt , Kenya , Nepal , Nigeria , Senegal , Pakistan , Bangladesh , Burundi , China And several other countries.
Available data indicate that Ghana accounted for 25 claims., Colombia accounted for 15 claims. , Egypt accounted for 15 claims. , Kenya accounted for 15 claims. Additional asylum claims were submitted by nationals of several other countries.
It is important to emphasize that filing an asylum claim does not mean the claim has been approved or that the applicant has been granted refugee protection.
In Canada, every asylum application is assessed individually under Canadian immigration and refugee law, and protection is granted only to applicants who meet the legal requirements.
The available information does not establish that all 175 individuals were football spectators or fans.
Those travelling to Canada in connection with the FIFA World Cup could have included players, coaches, officials, media representatives, sponsors, medical personnel, and other accredited participants. IRCC has not released a detailed breakdown of the specific categories of the 175 asylum claimants.
According to experts, the issue may prompt further discussion about visitor screening, temporary residence approvals, and asylum claims submitted after entry during future major international sporting events and global gatherings.
However, the filing of 175 asylum claims alone does not support the conclusion that the claims were unfounded, fraudulent, or pre-planned. Each case will be assessed independently by the appropriate Canadian authorities based on the evidence presented and in accordance with Canadian law.
