FBI Director Kash Patel seen signing autographs and posing with officers in World Cup promo video
FBI Director Kash Patel posted a video of himself thanking FBI agents for their hard work on the "largest sporting event in the history of the world."
FBI Director Kash Patel has posted a video of himself signing an autograph and posing with law enforcement officers while praising his agency's work in the World Cup.
Listen to this article
The 30 second video appears to have been shot outside of Met Life Stadium before the World Cup Final and includes footage of Patel, in a grey hoodie and slacks, thanking FBI agents and other law enforcement officers for their hard work throughout the tournament.
This is spliced together with footage of him signing a World Cup poster and posting for organised photos with officers.
“We put on the largest sporting event in the history of the world,” Patel told his agents in the video.
“And everybody including FIFA, and the White House, to the FBI, to our interagency partners, to DHS, to state and local, to everybody, to figure out how to get six and a half million people into the US and into these games without a single major security incident.”
Read more: The winners and losers from World Cup 2026
The 2026 FIFA World Cup was the largest sporting event in the history of the world, shattering previous attendance record by double digits. America- we got it done, ZERO major security incidents across our nation while we hosted the equivalent of 78 super bowls in 38 days, along… pic.twitter.com/EahCo1SD6Y
— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) July 20, 2026
In his post, Patel said of his organisation: “We DELIVERED the safest and most secure World Cup in history.”
It is unclear from the footage who the autograph was for, and whether it was requested by anyone.
While Patel praised law enforcement for getting six and a half million people into the US for the tournament, several football players, including the entire Iranian team, and one referee from Somalia, had their US visas denied.
The Iran team had to travel back and forth from their base in Mexico to their games, as they were unable to stay the night between matches in the US.
The Somali referee, Omar Artan, was eventually granted the ability to referee matches in Canada.
Numerous fans also reported having their US visas denied after already spending thousands on World Cup tickets.
Scottish fan, Michael Wright, was one of several people who saw his ESTA application move from “approved” to “travel not authorised” without explanation.
His visa was reinstated after politicians lobbied on his behalf.
This is not the first time Patel has become the story during a global sporting event.
Following the U.S. men’s hockey team’s victory at The Olympics, Patel was spotted drinking beer with the team in their locker room.
In response to outcries about his behaviour, Patel said on X: “I love America and was extremely humbled when my friends, the newly minted Gold Medal winners on Team USA, invited me into the locker room.”
Despite showing footage of him signing an autograph, Patel was effusive in his praise for law enforcement, ending his video by saying: “We have lived up to that measure [of safety] because you guys have put in the time.
"It’s truly, truly, incredible. We can’t say enough about the preparation and the execution. It’s been flawless.”