FIFA confirms no change to security assessment after USA withdraw from Qatar 2026 Under-17 World Cup

FIFA says its security assessment for the FIFA U-17 World Cup Qatar 2026 remains unchanged after the United States withdrew from the tournament because of safety concerns.

The United States Soccer Federation informed world football’s governing body of its decision to pull its Under-17 team out of the competition, which is due to be held in Qatar from 19 November to 13 December 2026.

In a statement, FIFA said: “We have been informed of the decision of the United States Soccer Federation to withdraw from the FIFA U-17 World Cup Qatar 2026, and the regulations governing the tournament will be applied.”

It added: “There have been no new developments affecting the security situation surrounding the tournament, and our security assessments remain unchanged. We understand that the decision by the United States Soccer Federation was taken in light of the current US travel advisory at level three.”

The US State Department’s level-three advisory encourages travellers to reconsider visiting Qatar because of the risk of armed conflict. The advisory was issued on 23 October, according to the United States Soccer Federation, which confirmed its decision to ESPN.

FIFA said the safety and security of all participants and supporters remained its “top priority”. It added that, as with all FIFA tournaments and events, it was maintaining close contact with the relevant authorities and looked forward to the competition beginning in Qatar.

The governing body also pointed to Qatar’s successful hosting of several international events in recent months. Those included the Padel World Cup, the FIVB Men’s U17 World Championship, the Doha Athletics Meeting, Asian qualifying matches for the 2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup, MotoGP races and the International Telecommunication Union conference.

The tournament is scheduled to begin in one week, with 48 teams taking part. The final will be played on 13 December.

The United States had been due to open its campaign against Montenegro on 21 November, before facing Chile and Algeria in the group stage.

Egypt’s Under-17 side is in Group A alongside hosts Qatar, Panama and Greece. The team is coached by Hussein Abdel Latif and qualified for the World Cup after finishing third at the Africa U-17 Cup of Nations.

The United States withdrawal means the team will not take part in the group-stage schedule originally planned for the tournament.