Peter Steinfeld: Hello and welcome to The Employee Safety Podcast from AlertMedia, where you’ll hear advice from industry leaders on how to protect your people and business. I’m Peter Steinfeld.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup is set to be the largest and most complex in the event’s history, spanning three countries, 16 host cities, and more than a month of operational pressure.

Today, I’m joined again by my friend and colleague, Sara Pratley, Senior Vice President of Global Intelligence at AlertMedia, to talk through how organizations can prepare for the cascading impacts surrounding the World Cup. Here’s our conversation. Hey, Sara, thanks for being here.

Sara Pratley: Hi, Peter. Thanks so much for having me on again. I’m really looking forward to digging into this topic.

Peter Steinfeld: Yeah, this is going to be good stuff. Let’s start with your team. You have been doing a lot of work to prepare for this tournament.

Can you tell us a little bit about the Global Intelligence team and how you’re approaching something as large as the World Cup?

Sara Pratley: Yeah, absolutely. There is a ton when we think about the threat landscape, everything that we’re looking for, everything that we’re monitoring.

Even several weeks out, we’ve got an amazing Global Intelligence team.

They’ve been reporting on and analyzing and planning and supporting our customers already across so many different areas with this, everything from strategic intelligence as we do these deeper dives and look-aheads, to really narrowly focusing on kinetic events that could impact anybody who’s around the venues and the sites, travel, and security. And then I can imagine our meteorologists will be really busy throughout the event as well.

So again, just kind of a culmination of a lot of things coming together with the team, especially as we think about the duration and the size of this event. Three countries, more than a dozen different host cities, and numerous different base camps hosting teams.

So there’s really just a ton at play that the team is continuing to work toward for our customers.

Peter Steinfeld: Well, they have a lot to cover. So let’s dive into some specific risk categories that your team has identified as potentially disruptive for organizations.

From a physical security standpoint, where are the biggest exposures surrounding the 2026 World Cup?

Sara Pratley: Yeah, as you mentioned, and if you just kind of think about it, there are so many different locations. I think many people will reasonably start by thinking primarily about the main sites, particularly the stadiums that are hosting the matches. Those absolutely will be incredibly important focal points when we think about this, particularly stadium gates and the immediate surrounding areas.

That said, it’s really the locations beyond that that I think could have the biggest exposure. We’re thinking about all of these fan zones, from bars to watch parties. There’s the transit corridors, all of these different hubs and sites that will really be around and supporting the event. That’s where we’re going to see equally large crowds. In some cases, we’ll see less security and potential gaps there.

That is why it’s super important for folks operating in and around these areas to really be paying particular attention to them.

When we think about physical threats, there’s a lot we will be watching for and anticipating, everything from opportunistic crime. You have a lot of crowds, so you’re going to have a lot of petty theft. The opportunities for property crime and violent crime could be seen in specific cities. I know there’s a lot of focus in particular on Mexico right now, so we’re watching a lot of activity and a lot of preparation there.

Hooliganism, of course, is also a concern. Fans can get quite rowdy around these sorts of matches and activities, so that is a particular point of interest as well, depending on different facilities and teams.

Then there are also indirect impacts. We are likely to see strain on things like emergency services in these areas. I know cities and locations are taking great care to staff up, but we will still see a lot of pressure on those resources as heavy crowds build.

Peter Steinfeld: I know that civil unrest is another category that your team is tracking closely. What’s driving protest risk during the tournament?

Sara Pratley: Yeah, absolutely. We mention protests and demonstrations quite a bit on my team. We’ve seen the number of demonstrations and protests rise significantly in recent years, really in every corner of the globe.

We’ve also seen trends like these mega demonstration campaigns, where a few groups call for events across a multitude of cities, sometimes hundreds of cities. So that is definitely an area we’re focusing on ahead of and during all of the matches and events.

When it comes to the World Cup, we definitely expect to see demonstration activity around all of the events. Some of it will be directed toward FIFA, whether it is tied to political engagements or even issues that fans have with things like video review policies.

But we will probably also see a much more distinct number of events that are topically focused outside of FIFA and outside of the matches themselves, everything from geopolitical events like the conflict in the Middle East to groups drawing attention to what they are experiencing in the United States or elsewhere.

Politics will also play a role. Earlier this year in the United States, we saw a lot of activity around ICE and immigration policies. We already saw some of this play out during a few soccer matches, including with LAFC fans and Minneapolis fans bringing posters and visible messaging into stadiums during events.

Another important point to note is that the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement is expected to be discussed during the tournament itself. That could create another political flashpoint as well.

And while most demonstrations do remain peaceful, which is something we pay close attention to, even peaceful demonstrations can be incredibly disruptive, especially around venues and already congested locations. We could see even more congestion, blocked transit routes, and delays as a result.

Peter Steinfeld: Now, when leaders hear “global event,” terrorism concern is often part of the security conversation. So what’s the current outlook around this tournament?

Sara Pratley: Yeah, it’s a really good point. And I think it’s important to note at the outset that at this point we are not tracking any credible or specific plots targeting the World Cup or any of the matches or events.

That said, the World Cup’s visibility absolutely raises concerns, especially in the current environment. Lone actors are a primary concern around matches and events. These sorts of actors can be really hard to detect ahead of time, and they often use low-tech tactics like vehicle rammings or mass stabbings, both of which are difficult to disrupt before they happen.

The stadiums hosting the matches are certainly focal points, but those surrounding areas could be even more prominent soft targets because of heavier foot traffic and lighter screening.

And we really cannot emphasize that enough. The areas of interest for these events are very vast. They span hotels, training grounds, fan areas, and the broader radius around where people will be staying and traveling.

There is another important point to make here as well. We saw a situation unfold in Mexico earlier this year after the killing of one of the notorious cartel leaders there. The violence that followed did dissipate and a more normal state returned fairly quickly, but it still raises concerns in this area.

I know that members of FIFA were in Mexico several weeks ago speaking with authorities about the security plan and revisiting World Cup security for this exact reason.

Peter Steinfeld: You bring up a really good point. You’ve got these main venues where people will be, and that is probably where the highest level of risk will be, but there will also be the highest level of security. Then you move out to places a little further away, and while the risk drops a little, so does the security.

Is that something your team thinks about, like, less security here, easier target, maybe something we need to keep more of an eye on?

Sara Pratley: Very much. Especially as we see potential events unfolding in these areas in real time around the matches.

There will be a lot of priority on the stadiums and what is happening there, but it is really the surrounding vicinity that we pay even closer attention to for that exact reason.

Peter Steinfeld: What about cyber? It seems like cyber risk tends to spike around major global events. So what patterns are you expecting here?

Sara Pratley: Yeah, cyber risks are an absolute guarantee here, and we can learn a lot from what we’ve seen in the past.

If you look back to the last World Cup, we saw widespread scams tied to things like ticketing and fan services, everything from fake websites and apps to phishing campaigns, all aimed at the usual targets: harvesting credentials and payment details.

What makes this even more complicated now is the introduction of AI into the landscape. AI increases not only the speed at which these scams can be created, but also the quality. That matters a lot here, both in terms of the quality and quantity of attacks.

And I know many people are probably thinking this is mainly a vulnerability for fans or people trying to get tickets. And it absolutely is. But businesses are at risk too.

Employees may click sketchy links. Businesses may be impersonated through highly convincing scams using logos and brand elements. Your business does not need to be involved in the games to get unexpectedly pulled into the middle of all this.

The World Cup is the ideal focus for cyber actors. There is huge demand, which creates urgency, and urgency creates situations where people let their guard down.

Peter Steinfeld: Yeah, we were talking a couple days ago about how people might be trying to get tickets last minute. They see a ticket pop up, it looks like a great price, they click right away because they are trying to grab it, and suddenly they have let a bad actor into their phone, or potentially their work network.

So this is probably a really good time for organizations to do an education campaign across their employee base, warning them that this kind of stuff can happen.

Sara Pratley: Totally. Socialization and education.

For most of us, it’s really just a strong reminder. I want to get tickets to the matches too, so I understand the excitement. And again, that is exactly the point where our guard can drop a little. There is urgency and excitement driving us.

Peter Steinfeld: During high-visibility events, perception can become a real threat vector. What does disinformation risk look like during a tournament like this?

Sara Pratley: Yeah, that is another really important one to mention, especially since we just noted the entry of AI into the landscape.

We can certainly see generated brand logos or even leadership likenesses being used in things like false safety alerts or fake cancellations. Those kinds of messages can spread really fast and cause confusion, not just for fans, but for businesses and employees as well.

This is where it becomes especially important to have trusted sources of information. For employees, that should be their company’s established leaders and teams, such as security, corporate communications, or business continuity, so there is an expectation set early around where information will come from, what channels will be used, and even what cadence people should expect.

When we think about the risk to businesses and brands, I also think a lot about monitoring. Having information as early as possible is incredibly important. False information can spread quickly across social media platforms, so organizations need to be monitoring for brand mentions and narratives across both mainstream and fringe channels.

That includes traditional platforms as well as places like Gab, Gettr, and 4chan. Being prepared here and having a plan to monitor these spaces is something businesses should be thinking about now ahead of the World Cup, and honestly beyond it as a best practice.

Another related element is the players and the matches themselves. We are continuing to see disinformation in that area too, and I expect it to increase. We recently saw a report spread very quickly about one of the Iranian players who had allegedly decided to join the Iranian army. His agent quickly refuted it and warned about the disinformation, but because of the heightened environment around the Middle East and the World Cup, it spread very quickly.

So this is definitely another area where my team will be paying very close attention ahead of and during the tournament.

Peter Steinfeld: It is getting really difficult because the misinformation comes out, then maybe the person corrects the record, but then you start wondering whether to trust that, and it kind of spirals. How do you stay on top of all that?

Sara Pratley: It really comes back to trusted sources of information. I cannot say that enough. It is trust, but it is also validation.

If our teams are seeing information, we are looking closely at credibility and verification so that we understand the truth and can use that to drive decision-making for our employees.

Peter Steinfeld: When you train your team, do you tell them to trust their gut reaction, or ignore it and follow a process? How do you slow down and validate something that looks believable?

Sara Pratley: It is a little bit of both.

Part of it is familiarity with situations. Part of it is expertise that our team has built through analysis and intelligence backgrounds. Another part is the source of information itself.

We do a lot of work to build networks of credible sources, really tens of thousands of verified sources in our catalogs. So having that awareness of credibility, along with a healthy skepticism when something is not coming from a trusted source, is really important.

There is a lot that goes into it.

Peter Steinfeld: And if you’re running a business and get information you’re not sure is real, maybe you’ve done some initial analysis and it looks serious, is that something you should share immediately with executives or other stakeholders, or should you wait? What is a good cadence, and what caveats should you include?

Sara Pratley: I think the caveats are the important part.

Creating awareness, at least with certain internal stakeholders, is important because things can spread quickly and you want to get ahead of them, even if only internally at first. But you also need to be transparent. Here is what we have. Here are the questions we are asking. Here is why we are raising this now.

If it evolves, here are the impacts we foresee. Then you continue with transparent conversations and updates so you are already ahead of the curve if action becomes necessary.

Peter Steinfeld: Switching gears a bit, this is an event that is happening across a big geographic area. Travel friction may be one of the most operationally disruptive elements of the whole thing. Where should organizations focus?

Sara Pratley: Yeah, it is huge. Dozens of cities across five weeks. This has a lot of potential to cause impacts for businesses.

Even if people are not traveling to the events themselves, they may still be traveling all around them, whether for business or summer vacation in North America.

The things my team and I are really thinking about fall into a few main areas. Visa appointments and backlogs are one. Those can become really difficult as the tournament gets closer. Increased border traffic is another. Because this experience spans three countries, border crossings are part of the experience itself, and the volume alone is likely to create delays, even without additional security issues.

Lodging shortages are another major concern. These cities will be absorbing thousands, if not tens of thousands, of fans, and that is going to put pressure on areas that may not have enough hotel capacity.

I also think it is important to recognize that while many people listening may understand the scale and timing of the event, many people across their organizations may not be thinking about it yet. They may know there is a major soccer event coming up, but not really understand the number of locations involved or how much disruption it could create.

If they are trying to plan business travel around these places, they may not be anticipating the impact.

Peter Steinfeld: Yeah, it might be a good idea to reach out to your prospects or customers and say maybe we should move our meeting to a week or two before or after the event to save everyone time and money.

Sara Pratley: Yeah. A very easy thing to do now, ahead of time, is to look at the locations and the timing. We still have information and time on our side.

Peter Steinfeld: What about climate and environmental factors? Those seem like a major part of the threat landscape now. What stands out here for the World Cup?

Sara Pratley: Yeah, I’m glad you asked that. We have an awesome team of meteorologists, and they have been flagging a lot that we will be watching as we get closer and during the event.

Everything from severe weather to natural disasters could impact one or several of the matches over the course of the five weeks. We are already seeing wildfires happening across the United States. Canada is coming off its second-worst wildfire season ever, and many places are in severe drought. So a lot more locations around these matches are susceptible to wildfire activity.

The tournament is also happening during hurricane season. We will be several weeks into it by that point, and we will be watching both the Atlantic and Pacific hurricane seasons, since Mexico and the U.S. West Coast are also in play.

Then there are all kinds of other extreme weather events, including extreme heat, severe thunderstorms, and flooding. These are all things this geography experiences during these months. I would be surprised if the tournament gets through without some type of weather impact.

That means people will want to pay close attention to forecasting, trend monitoring, and how weather could affect both people and movement around these locations.

Peter Steinfeld: Which ties back into travel. Weather can really cascade in its impact. Flights are affected, driving becomes harder, games might be delayed. It can create a real chain reaction.

Sara Pratley: Right. All of those things.

Peter Steinfeld: Are there any other additional disruptors your team is watching that leaders might overlook?

Sara Pratley: Yeah, the list honestly goes on and on, but I will highlight a few.

Drone activity is one in particular that the team will be watching. We are seeing a bigger impact from drones around live events and sporting events in particular. It is not just the drones themselves that can cause delays or concern, but also the counter-drone measures. Those are good and necessary, but they can create delays too.

Infrastructure strain is another big one, everything from power grids to transportation.

Some of these host cities have really strong transportation infrastructure, but many do not. So we are looking at congestion and a lot of strain on the transportation that does exist, along with added pressure on rideshare apps, taxis, and rental car services.

I would also note that minor incidents can quickly cascade into much larger impacts in an environment like this. Something that would normally have a small effect can become far more disruptive when you have high density and heightened emotions in the atmosphere.

Peter Steinfeld: That is a really good point. How should leaders think about how risk intensifies over the five-week window?

Sara Pratley: It is a prolonged event, and as we move from week to week, all of the things we have talked about will intensify in each phase.

As we get down to fewer teams and fewer matches, we will see even larger crowds because there are fewer locations. We will also see more travel, stronger demand for tickets, and stronger demand for hotels.

All of this intensifies with each passing week as we get closer to the finals.

So I think simply recognizing that now and planning for those changing phases is really important. Again, we have the benefit of time on our side. A lot of this is relatively predictable when we think about crowd movements and how the tournament will evolve.

Peter Steinfeld: Yeah. It does not just intensify, it also gets more last minute and unpredictable because as teams win, behavior changes. People with no plan to go to Mexico City might suddenly decide to go last minute, and it gets kind of wild toward the end.

Sara Pratley: Exactly. It is exciting, but it will also be equally chaotic.

Peter Steinfeld: Yeah, indeed. Well, if an organization wants to start preparing or advance its current plans, what are the most practical steps it should take?

Sara Pratley: First off, if you are listening to this, you clearly have interest, which is great. Taking interest is a huge part of preparedness.

I would start by looking primarily at the locations. That is such a strong starting point, both the host cities and the base camps. Then I would cross-reference that with assets. Where do I have employees? Where do I have offices? Where might I have travelers?

As we think about this, I would also add in a few other locations tied to the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. That is another important factor to recognize because it will be happening in the midst of the tournament, and those locations will be important as well.

Once you map your locations and assets, you will have a much clearer picture of where your biggest challenges may be. That can help guide business continuity planning, security planning, and geo-specific contingencies.

At that point, organizations can also begin communicating what the business is doing, pre-building communications templates, and establishing that trusted source of truth I mentioned earlier.

Then it becomes important to get set up to monitor in real time. With the number of locations, demonstrations, and kinetic events that could happen, now is the time to think through how you are going to monitor for all of it.

And one other thing I would suggest is downloading our World Cup situation report. You can find it at alertmedia.com. It is free and available there.

It covers many of the things we discussed today and may also surface other topics businesses should be having preparedness conversations around ahead of the tournament.

Peter Steinfeld: Well, Sara, once again, thank you so much for being on the show and for all the great work that you and your team do.

Sara Pratley: Yeah, absolutely. It is a fun topic.

It will be an amazing tournament, I am sure, but I am glad we are all preparing so far in advance for the uncertainty to come so that we can plan and prepare as effectively as possible.

Peter Steinfeld: Indeed.

To learn more about how AlertMedia’s Global Intelligence Team can help your organization prepare for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, download the full situation report Sara mentioned in the episode description. You can also watch video highlights on AlertMedia’s YouTube channel.

Don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and review the show wherever you get your podcasts.

Stay safe out there.

Outro: Thank you for listening to The Employee Safety Podcast from AlertMedia, the world’s leading provider of risk intelligence and response solutions.

To learn more about how to protect your people and business during critical incidents, visit alertmedia.com.