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Human Rights
A comprehensive human rights action plan, aligned with FIFA requirements, will now be published in December 2025, instead of August as per FIFA. In the meantime, we are actively progressing on all 21 mandated human rights issues, with approximately 100 tactics outlined in the plan, some of which are already in motion. Below is a brief snapshot of planned mitigations, including those addressing human trafficking, representing only a small portion of our full plan.
TRAININGS
Training on human trafficking, LGBTQIA+ sensitivity, and accessibility is being developed for delivery across key sectors and groups, including law enforcement and private security, transportation, volunteers, and the hospitality industry. Sessions will be scheduled from January through May 2026, with final logistics still in progress.
WORKER RIGHTS AND HUMAN TRAFFICKING
A Responsible Contracting Policy, supported by detailed processes, is now in effect to reinforce worker protections and proactively address the risks of labor exploitation and human trafficking in our supply chain.
In support of this policy, we are planning to operationalize a dedicated Worker Center at the FIFA Fan Festival. This space will provide workers with a place to file grievances. All services and materials will be available in both English and Spanish to ensure accessibility for all workers.
We have also joined with a leading international partner to prepare a broad social media campaign, using our soccer-focused platform to highlight issues such as gender-based violence and buyer awareness. The campaign will run from May to July 2026.
ACCESSIBILITY
Stakeholders requested an assessment of accessibility options for rideshare services. Both Uber and Lyft already provide wheelchair-accessible rides, accommodate mobility devices, and maintain clear policies permitting service animals. Uber is introducing new features aimed at reducing discrimination against visually impaired riders, while Lyft supports screen readers and offers assisted ride services.
The FIFA Fan Festival will be an accessible event, with more than 20 accessibility integrations planned. Additional details will be shared in May 2026.
FREE SPEECH
We are developing a Free Speech Toolkit to help demonstrators understand the scope of constitutionally protected free speech, with particular emphasis on time, place, and manner restrictions. The goal is to support lawful expression and encourage peaceful free speech.
INCLUSION
In addition to our many existing working groups, we have launched an Interfaith Working Group to help promote social and religious cohesion. This group brings together diverse faith and community leaders.
For more on the history of stakeholder engagement and the creation of the human rights action plan, continue reading below.
Background Information
During the bid process, the Dallas Sports Commission engaged 250 stakeholders across several human rights issues pre-identified by FIFA for exploration. The resulting Human Rights Plan was submitted during the bid process along with other technical aspects.
In July 2024, FIFA World Cup 26™ issued their long-awaited Human Rights Framework (Framework). This Framework differed from the request made during the bid process and asked Host Committees to examine human rights violations in three areas:
- Inclusion and Safeguarding – Inclusion and non-discrimination, safeguarding, human trafficking, gender equity, LGBTQIA+, gender-based violence, freedom of assembly, expression and press, accessibility, and security and policing.
- Workers’ Rights – Fair wages, child labor, non-discrimination, inclusive hiring protocols, grievances and access to remedy, forced labor and labor trafficking, poor working conditions, occupational, health and safety, freedom of association and collective bargaining, migrant workers’ rights, rest and reasonable limitation of working hours, preventing and addressing harassment and abuse at work, responsible contracting and transparent dealings.
- Access to Remedy – ensuring that anyone that may have experienced a human rights violation linked to hosting in North Texas has access to remedy in addition to workers.
Aligning the 2020 Bid Plan Submission to the new FIFA World Cup 26™ Framework
The North Texas FIFA World Cup Organizing Committee (NTFWCOC) crossed the bid plan submission from 2020 with the new Framework to align the input from the bid plan with the new expectations FIFA World Cup 26™ set. The results of the cross are as follows:
- There were 89 opportunities to mitigate potential harms for what now falls under Safeguarding and Inclusion.
- There were 12 opportunities to mitigate potential harms for what now falls under Workers’ Rights.
- There were 0 ideas on Access to Remedy, this was not an area of analysis required during the bid process.
- Note – Human Trafficking was flagged as a special area of concern by North Texas area stakeholders.
October 31, 2024, Human Rights Workshop Summary and Next Steps
With the release of the new Framework in July 2024, the NTFWCOC designed and hosted an in person Human Rights workshop on October 31, 2024, with 125 stakeholders. At the workshop, the 125 stakeholders further prioritized 64 of the 102 ideas proposed in the 2020 bid plan. These 64 ideas underwent a legal, feasibility, and budget analysis. The results of this and the finalized list of action steps to prepare our community for the World Cup were shared in a virtual report out call on January 22, 2025, at 10 AM CST.
A final Human Rights Action Plan is currently due to FIFA World Cup 26™ in December 2025. For transparency, we will also publish the Action Plan here unless the publication date is changed.
RECENT: HUMAN RIGHTS ACTION PLAN FEEDBACK AND NEXT STEPS
Following the Human Rights Workshop on October 31, 2024, the Draft Action Plan was released for public feedback on March 24, 2025. The feedback period closed on April 30, 2025, during which 63 points of input were submitted by 13 stakeholders. To promote transparency, a report-out session was held on May 15, 2025, to share how public feedback was addressed. More than 80 stakeholders participated, with invitations extended to over 300 individuals and organizations.
If you have questions, concerns, or comments, please email our Chief Human Rights Officer at Minal@dallasfwc26.com.
