FIFA expands World Cup 2026 anti-doping partnerships

FIFA has formalised cooperation with national anti-doping organisations in all three FIFA World Cup 2026 host countries, setting up an expanded testing programme designed to deliver consistent sample collection and coordination across the tournament footprint.The governing body said it will work with the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, Sport Integrity Canada and Mexico’s National Anti-Doping Committee as part of what it described as one of the most extensive anti-doping programmes in football, covering the build-up period and the competition itself.Emilio García Silvero, FIFA Chief Legal and Compliance Officer, said: “Major international events require strong partnerships. By working with USADA, Sport Integrity Canada and Mexico’s National Anti-Doping Committee, we’re strengthening our global anti-doping efforts and reinforcing FIFA’s commitment to fair and clean competition.”Under the agreements, each national anti-doping organisation will conduct out-of-competition testing under FIFA’s testing authority and direction in the relevant countries ahead of the tournament.During the competition, the host-country bodies will also provide doping control officers to support FIFA’s operations across both out-of-competition missions and matchday testing at each host venue.FIFA said the programme will operate in line with the FIFA Anti-Doping Regulations and the World Anti-Doping Code, with an emphasis on consistent standards across the three jurisdictions.Travis T. Tygart, chief executive of USADA, said: “This kind of international partnership between like-minded organisations is absolutely critical to ensuring that clean players have access to a level playing field on a global stage like the FIFA World Cup 2026.“With the tournament set to bring the world’s best players to the United States, we’re honoured to help deliver a strong, transparent anti-doping programme that players and fans can trust.”Sport Integrity Canada chief executive Jeremy Luke said: “We are excited to partner with FIFA and to support Canadian anti-doping controls at the FIFA World Cup. Protecting the integrity of sport requires a coordinated effort, and we’re proud to do our part to keep the game clean on the world’s biggest stage in our own home.”Dr Juan Manuel Herrera Navarro, executive director of Mexico’s National Anti-Doping Committee, said: “Supporting FIFA’s anti-doping efforts in Mexico is a special responsibility, and we are proud to help safeguard the fairness of the competition so that the magic of the World Cup in our country is matched by the integrity of the game on the pitch.”The partnerships extend a model FIFA said it used previously with USADA around the FIFA Club World Cup, and they give FIFA a local delivery network to handle the scale of a 48-team tournament spread across three countries.FIFA World Cup 2026 is scheduled to run from June 11 to July 19, with the federations and anti-doping organisations now moving into operational planning on staffing, testing missions and coordination across the host cities.