Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow will ask city council next week to oppose to any involvement of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in the city when it hosts FIFA World Cup games.
“U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has demonstrated through their actions in Minnesota and across the U.S. that they bring fear and disorder, not safety and security,” Chow says in the motion that will go to council.
“Any presence of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Toronto is liable to create fear during a time when we want to welcome the world and ensure that everyone feels safe.”
The mayor’s office said Friday it has no confirmation that ICE will be in Toronto during the World Cup. But the motion recommends that council ask Federal Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree and Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand to reject any ICE deployment in the city and Ontario Solicitor General Michael Kerzner to oppose any involvement.
The motion, seconded by Coun. Paul Ainslie, also asks council forward its decision to the Toronto Police Service Board. The motion comes after ICE has received widespread criticism for its deportation crackdown in the U.S.
“City Council should be clear that we are committed to upholding and defending our constitutional rights by making a clear statement; No ICE in Toronto,” Chow says.
Vancouver city council also considered a similar motion in February — to oppose deployment of ICE agents in the city for the FIFA World Cup — but it did not go to a vote after it was ruled out of order.
Toronto will host six World Cup games, between June 12 and July 2, all at Toronto Stadium, also known as BMO Field, at Exhibition Place. Vancouver is set to host seven games at B.C. Place stadium in downtown Vancouver.
ICE has offices in Toronto and 4 other Canadian cities
The U.S. government’s website lists ICE offices in five Canadian cities: Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Montreal and Ottawa.
An ICE spokesperson has confirmed to CBC News that its criminal investigative law enforcement component — Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) — conducts work at the U.S. embassy in Canada’s capital and at consulates in the other four Canadian cities.
HSI personnel are separate from the ICE arm, known as Enforcement and Removal Operations, at the forefront of the immigration crackdowns.
According to the U.S. government website, HSI has over 93 offices in more than 50 countries, with a mandate to identify and stop crime before it reaches the United States.
Several people have been killed by U.S. federal agents.
Renee Nicole Good was fatally shot by an ICE agent in Minnesota on Jan. 7. Then, just over a week ago, ICU nurse Alex Pretti was killed in another shooting by federal officers.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection police officers stand outside the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building during a protest on Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026, in Minneapolis. ICE has received much criticism for its deportation crackdown in the U.S. (Yuki Iwamura/The Associated Press)
1st World Cup game in Toronto set for June 12
Canada will play a men’s FIFA World Cup match in Toronto, facing the European Playoff A winner (Italy, Northern Ireland, Wales and Bosnia and Herzegovina) on June 12.
Toronto will host Ghana versus Panama on June 17, Germany versus Côte d’Ivoire on June 20, Panama versus Croatia on June 23, and Senegal versus a playoff winner, Iraq, Bolivia or Suriname, on June 26.
On July 2, there will be a knockout stage game held in Toronto in the Round of 32.
Toronto’s theme for the games is The World in the City, and there will be a FIFA Fan Festival at The Bentway in Toronto for 22 days from June 11 to July 19.