An Argentine soccer player who plays for a local Miami team remains detained in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody.
Matías Alejandro Pourrain, 34, has been in the United States since 2019, when he entered on a tourist visa.
Pourrain reportedly filed an immigration application that is still pending, but he was granted a work permit that is currently valid, attorney Regina de Moraes told Telemundo 51 in an interview.
The attorney says it all began last Thursday, when the player and his team, Miami United FC, were trying to travel to Los Angeles to play in the UPSL final.
Matías Alejandro Pourrain while playing for Orlando-based Club de Lyon.
According to her, the players had cleared Transportation Security Administration (TSA) screening and were waiting to board their flight when three men in plainclothes approached Pourrain.
“They asked for his name, he confirmed his name, and they said they needed to ask him a couple of questions,” De Moraes explained. “There was no commotion or a fight, nothing,” she added.
Pourrain was separated from his teammates. That was when someone on the team—who knows the attorney—contacted her, and she in turn reached out to ICE officers who told her, she says, that the young man would be detained and that he “could seek bond with an immigration judge or sign for voluntary self-deportation.”
That day, the player was taken to the ICE detention center in Miramar, where he stayed until this Saturday, when, according to the attorney, he began being transferred to the Krome North Service Processing Center in Miami.
The ICE detainee locator confirms he is in custody, although it still does not specify at which facility. Telemundo 51 contacted ICE, and so far, they have not been able to confirm the details of the detention or which agency carried it out.
Detentions at airports are increasing
De Moraes stresses that her client has no criminal record: “Matías doesn’t have any criminal offenses. He’s never been arrested for a DUI, domestic violence, theft—nothing,” she said. Telemundo 51 was able to confirm there are no police records that include his name, at least in Miami-Dade and Broward counties.
De Moraes also said that while he was in Miramar, agents tried to persuade him to sign his voluntary self-deportation, and she even mentioned offers of money to those who agreed to sign. The soccer player did not sign anything.
When asked about a reason for the detention, she indicated that Matías has a pending immigration petition—neither approved nor denied—and that this can be grounds for detention.
“It’s a gray area in immigration… there’s nothing that says they can’t do that,” she said. She added that “under other administrations, someone like Matías wouldn’t be arrested; he would simply be detained, processed, and released,” attributing the case to stricter immigration policies.
The arrest comes as reports point to an increase in detentions of migrants at airport terminals, even when they are not crossing an international border.
On this point, Telemundo immigration analyst Kathia Quirós says it is a real risk even to approach or stop in an airport parking lot: “TSA is sharing these individuals’ information with ICE and Border Patrol.”
In Matías’ case, his family hopes a bond request can be filed. Meanwhile, his team—where he not only plays, but also coaches children—has rallied around him and said in a statement on social media:
“Matías is not only an exceptional soccer player but, above all, an even better person and an important part of the Miami United family. His teammates, coaches, staff, and the entire Club stand firmly by his side and with his family.”
The Department of Homeland Security released the following statement:
““On August 6, 2026, ICE arrested Matias Alejandro Pourrain, an illegal alien from Argentina, at the Fort Lauderdale International Airport. On November 12, 2019, Pourrain was legally admitted into the country at the Atlanta Intercontinental Airport, with permission to stay for six months. He chose to stay beyond May 11, 2020, in violation of our nation’s laws.
“Pourrain will remain in ICE custody pending his removal proceedings and will receive full due process.
“Being in detention is a choice. We encourage all illegal aliens to take control of their departure with the CBP Home App. The United States is offering illegal aliens $2,600 and a free flight to self-deport now. We encourage every person here illegally to take advantage of this offer and reserve the chance to come back to the U.S. the right legal way to live the American dream. If not, you will be arrested and deported without a chance to return.”
This story was translated from Spanish with the help of a generative artificial intelligence tool. An NBC digital editor reviewed the translation.