RENTON, New Jersey, US - Amid lower-than-expected reservations at United States hotels and persistent concerns over mass shootings, American security agencies are seeking to reassure global fans that the US will be safe to visit during next month's FIFA World Cup, as they opened the doors of a sprawling command center coordinating the protection of matches in the New York-New Jersey region.
Rudaw was recently given access to the facility in Trenton, which will serve as the nerve center for eight matches in the region, beginning on June 13 and culminating in the final on July 19 at MetLife Stadium, where roughly 80,000 spectators are expected, and a global television audience of about 3.2 billion is projected.
Twenty working groups, 400 partner agencies, and 17,000 registered private partners are sharing information through the center, which has capacity for about 120 personnel in its area command room, according to officials who briefed foreign media this week.
"There are no credible threats as of today," Lieutenant Colonel David Sierotowicz of the New Jersey State Police, the incident commander for the tournament in the region, told Rudaw. "We continue to monitor with our federal partners. We are fully postured, fully prepared to act on any intelligence we get."
Sierotowicz said authorities were focused on hardening so-called soft targets, including hotels, against the threat of lone attackers. "That goes to us taking a soft target, like a hotel, and making that a hard target, so it's not a vulnerable area for a lone wolf attacker," he said.
Drone threat
Officials said unmanned aircraft were among their top concerns. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has awarded $846 million in security grants to the nine states hosting matches across 11 US host cities, including more than $221 million earmarked for counter-drone capabilities.
"We do have mitigation strategies currently at all of our sites," Sierotowicz said. "It's a federal task force, with the New Jersey State Police included, to mitigate nefarious drones at any of our sites."
In New York City, the police department said it was relying on its intelligence apparatus and experience securing large-scale events.
"We have a strong intelligence bureau monitoring all information that's out there," said Deputy Inspector Robert Gault, the NYPD's FIFA coordinator. "Any actionable intel we receive, we have a plan to address — an active shooter, anything like that. We have protocols in place, and the best trained police department to handle these type of incidents."
Beyond the Stadium
The US Secret Service, which is responsible for protecting visiting heads of state, said the World Cup posed challenges that exceeded those of the Super Bowl because of the size of the crowds expected outside the stadium itself.
"Right off the bat, you're talking about a significant amount of people," said Craig Marech, Special Agent in Charge of the Secret Service's Newark field office, in an interview with Rudaw. "Yes, we have 82,000 people that will attend the stadium, but the people who will watch the Fan Fest, the amount of people that we've flushed into the location — we are planning for each and every contingency."
Marech said the agency would ensure "a safe and secure environment" for protectees, including heads of state and government, as well as for fans.
Transit and economics
Authorities plan to move roughly 78,000 spectators to MetLife Stadium by mass transit on match days. NJ Transit will cap ticket sales at 40,000 per game and will not sell beyond that limit, officials said.
The tournament is projected to generate around $17 billion for the US economy. However, hotels in several host cities have reported bookings below initial projections, according to industry reports, a trend some analysts have linked to concerns among international travelers over security and entry policies.
US officials said they hoped the visibility of the security operation would help allay those concerns ahead of kickoff.