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The Crime Agents

The World Cup’s dark side: hooligans, ICE & terror threats

6/8/202635 min

The 2026 World Cup will be the biggest football tournament in history, but it could also be the most dangerous.

Andy reveals the shockingly small number of British police officers travelling to the US for the tournament, and explains why that makes hooliganism and crowd trouble at England and Scotland matches far more likely. What happens when rowdy English football fans meet armed, heavy-handed American cops?

Later, Neil breaks down the terror threat: why ISIS and other groups may see the World Cup as a target, and what he learned preparing London for the 2012 Olympics as a senior Met Police officer. Plus: could Trump's ICE agents pose a threat to Latin American and Middle Eastern fans attending the tournament?

And back in Britain, how is law enforcement preparing for a summer of international football? From the predictable spike in domestic violence, to the challenge of policing fan zones across major cities, Andy & Neil give you the inside track on everything you need to know.

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The Crime Agents is a Global production, available every Monday and Thursday on Global Player, YouTube or wherever you get your shows. Make sure you subscribe so you never miss an episode.

Clips

ISIS Threatens World Cup
Consent vs Command Policing
Armed US Police Concerns
Only Three UK Officers
Olympic Rooftop Missile Debate
Victory Linked To Violence

Transcript preview

First 90 seconds

  1. Neil Basu· Host0:01

    [upbeat music] This is a Global Player original podcast.

  2. Andy Hughes· Host0:05

    This country does have a reputation for violence when it comes to football tournaments. We might have a situation on our hands where we have more hooligans than police officers.

  3. Neil Basu· Host0:15

    Their culture is not one of consent.

  4. Andy Hughes· Host0:17

    No.

  5. Neil Basu· Host0:17

    Their culture is do what you're told.

  6. Andy Hughes· Host0:19

    It just takes one or two people to just turn the mood, and then that mob mentality comes to the fore. If something turns ugly, then the American police might do something that we all regret.

  7. Neil Basu· Host0:31

    There were conversations about just how extreme the, uh, safety measures needed to be. You remember the conversation about surface-to-air missiles on top of skyscrapers in London.

  8. Andy Hughes· Host0:40

    They were telling their followers, "Big sporting occasions are the perfect opportunity for us to commit jihad."

  9. Neil Basu· Host0:46

    This is straight out of the political Islamist jihadist playbook. [gentle music] The Crime Agents.

  10. Andy Hughes· Host0:53

    Welcome to this episode of The Crime Agents with me, crime journalist Andy Hughes.

  11. Neil Basu· Host0:58

    And me, the ex-cop, Neil Basu.

  12. Andy Hughes· Host1:00

    So this week, Neil, the World Cup starts, and I, for one, am very excited. Are you?

  13. Neil Basu· Host1:07

    I am. I s- I told you when we first started this adventure a year ago that I'd got back into football, and we were trading our teams. You know, you can't support a team like Leeds United and not, um, and not think. The ups and downs of football are pretty, pretty harsh.

  14. Andy Hughes· Host1:24

    Mm.

  15. Neil Basu· Host1:24

    Particularly since 1972. But the one thing, even when I've fallen out of love with football, I've never fallen

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