A World Cup legend Just Watched the Special Welcome DHS Gave His Team and Discovered America Doesn’t Back Down

America is hosting the World Cup.

And one team just got a welcome they were not expecting.

Legendary World Cup player and coach Fabio Cannavaro watched the whole thing happen and got a brutal reality check when he had one question for the men in charge.

Fabio Cannavaro and the Entire Uzbekistan Squad Got Searched While the Netherlands Walked Right In

Uzbekistan pulled up to Randalls Island on Monday for a tune-up friendly against the Netherlands.

Security personnel were waiting with metal detector wands and police dogs.

Every player got searched, every bag got inspected on the ground, and one staffer stepped off the bus and stood there with a look of open confusion on his face.

The Netherlands – the team on the other side of the field – went through none of it.

And when it was over, Uzbekistan's head coach Fabio Cannavaro – Italy's 2006 World Cup captain and one of the most decorated defenders in the history of the sport – told reporters exactly what he thought.

"They said to me it's the rules, but in the end the check was only for us."

https://x.com/TotalFootball/status/2064078712468128095“>https://x.com/TotalFootball/status/2064078712468128095

Senegal Got Searched on the Tarmac and Iraq's Star Player Was Detained for Seven Hours

The Uzbekistan search wasn't a one-off.

Senegal's squad was subjected to a full security screening on the Raleigh, North Carolina airport tarmac – metal detectors, bag inspections, shoes off – before boarding a private flight to San Antonio.

Iraq's star striker Aymen Hussein was detained and questioned for approximately seven hours at Chicago O'Hare International Airport, with his phone reportedly confiscated.

Iraq's team photographer was denied entry to the country entirely.

Iran couldn't get visas for 13 members of its administrative and technical staff and had to relocate its training camp across the border to Tijuana, Mexico.

Iran's players can enter the United States only the day before each of their matches – and a DHS spokesperson confirmed this, framing it as Trump's generosity.

A FIFA-appointed Somali referee was denied entry at Miami International Airport and sent home.

These aren't random travelers.

These are the players, coaches, and officials of sovereign nations who were invited to compete in a tournament the United States is hosting.

America's Security Doesn't Take a Knee for FIFA

Here's what the global sports media is calling humiliating – and what 77 million American voters call Tuesday.

DHS isn't running a boutique welcome service.

DHS runs the most secure border operation in American history, and it doesn't shut off because Gianni Infantino needs good optics for his tournament.

The Trump administration built a White House FIFA World Cup Task Force specifically to coordinate tournament security, and CBP has processed nearly six million travel applications for visiting fans.

The system isn't broken.

It's working exactly the way Trump promised it would work – thorough, unapologetic, and indifferent to who's complaining about it.

Uzbekistan is a Central Asian nation with complicated ties to countries on U.S. watch lists.

Iran's players have served in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which the U.S. has designated a foreign terrorist organization.

Iraq's team travels in from a country where the U.S. spent two decades fighting a war.

When security runs those delegations through extra screening, that isn't discrimination.

That's the job.

The rest of the world can call it humiliating all they want.

Trump called it keeping America safe – and he's been right about that before.

Sources:

• New York Post, "Uzbekistan national team faces shocking security check to play in World Cup friendly at Randalls Island," New York Post, June 9, 2026.
• Fox Sports, "Fabio Cannavaro appointed Uzbekistan manager as minnows prepare for first-ever World Cup campaign," FoxNews.com, October 6, 2025.
• Fox News, "Uzbekistan clinches first-ever World Cup spot," FoxNews.com, 2025.
• DHS spokesperson statement on Iran World Cup travel, Chicago Sun-Times, June 9, 2026.
• "Making America Safe Again: The State of DHS Under President Trump and Secretary Noem," DHS.gov, February 24, 2026.
• "DHS Sets the Stage for Another Historic, Record-Breaking Year Under President Trump," DHS.gov, January 20, 2026.