Does Miami have an ICE agreement for the 2026 World Cup?: Yes. Amnesty International's March 2026 report found Miami signed an ICE collaboration agreement with local law enforcement ahead of the World Cup.Source: Amnesty International
What stadium is the 2026 World Cup in Miami?: Miami World Cup matches are hosted at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, home of the NFL's Miami Dolphins.
Is it safe for international fans to attend the World Cup in Miami?: Amnesty International rated the 2026 tournament's overall risk as medium-to-high; fans from countries subject to US travel restrictions face elevated risk in Miami, which has an ICE collaboration agreement.Source: Amnesty International
Which US World Cup host cities signed ICE agreements?: Dallas, Houston and Miami all signed ICE collaboration agreements, according to Amnesty International's March 2026 report.Source: Amnesty International
What is Miami population and location?: Miami is a city in south Florida with roughly 470,000 residents in the city and 6.2 million in the metropolitan area.
Why was the Raúl Castro indictment unsealed in Miami?: The Department of Justice unsealed the superseding indictment at Miami's Freedom Tower on 20 May 2026, Cuban Independence Day. The Freedom Tower is the landmark that received hundreds of thousands of Cuban exiles after the revolution, making it a deliberate symbolic choice to honour the families of the four men killed in the 1996 Hermanos al Rescate shoot-down.Source: Department of Justice / Cuba Dispatch U5
What is Miami's connection to the Cuban exile community?: Miami has the largest Cuban-American population in the United States. The Freedom Tower in downtown Miami served as the main processing centre for Cuban refugees after 1959, and the city is home to Florida's three Cuban-American members of Congress.Source: Cuba Dispatch background
Is Miami a host city for the 2026 FIFA World Cup?: Yes. Miami hosts matches at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens. Amnesty International's March 2026 report flagged Miami as one of three US host cities with an ICE collaboration agreement, raising concerns about immigration enforcement near venues.Source: event
What is the Freedom Tower in Miami?: The Freedom Tower is a 1925 landmark in downtown Miami that served as the main reception and documentation centre for Cuban exiles arriving after Fidel Castro's 1959 revolution. It is considered the Ellis Island of the Cuban diaspora and is now a museum and cultural centre.Source: event

Background

Miami is a city in south Florida with a population of roughly 470,000 in the city proper and 6.2 million in the greater metropolitan area. It holds the largest Cuban-American population of any US city and is the political centre of the exile community, home to Florida's three Cuban-American congressional representatives: Carlos Giménez (FL-26), Mario Díaz-Balart (FL-25), and María Elvira Salazar (FL-27). The Department of Justice chose Miami's Freedom Tower — the 1925 landmark that received hundreds of thousands of Cuban arrivals after the revolution — as the venue to unseal the superseding indictment of Raúl Castro on 20 May 2026, Cuban Independence Day, a deliberate symbolic choice.

Miami is also one of the 16 host cities for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, scheduled to stage matches at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens. Amnesty International's March 2026 report "Humanity Must Win" identified Miami as one of three US host cities that had signed an ICE collaboration agreement with local law enforcement — alongside Dallas and Houston — and noted that none had addressed immigration enforcement in their human rights plans.

Miami's dual role — exile politics and World Cup host — makes it a recurring focal point. For the Cuban diaspora, the Freedom Tower ceremony was part of a coordinated pressure campaign; for World Cup observers, the ICE agreement raises concrete questions about fan safety. The city's Florida delegation has been among the most aggressive voices demanding licence revocations, Title III litigation, and personal sanctions against Cuban officials, giving Miami an outsized influence on Cuba policy relative to its congressional weight.