After a Super Bowl sex trafficking crackdown, NorCal authorities gear up for the World Cup
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Santa Clara County law enforcement officials are preparing to combat sex trafficking ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.After the Super Bowl at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, the Santa Clara County district attorney’s Human Trafficking Task Force reported that law enforcement across 11 Bay Area counties had arrested 29 traffickers and recovered 73 sex trafficking victims.Ten were minors.
One was a 12-year-old being trafficked in Oakland.Now, with the 2026 FIFA World Cup set to bring soccer tournaments to the same stadium between June 13 and July 1, the same agencies are already thinking ahead.The games will be played throughout Canada, Mexico and the U.S., with SoFi Stadium in Inglewood hosting eight matches and Levi’s Stadium hosting six.“The Super Bowl provided opportunities for increased awareness partnerships with analysts from various law enforcement agencies including prosecutors and community-based organizations,” said Lt.
Joshua Singleton, task force commander.“We are already working with other local, state, and federal analysts to prepare for the upcoming World Cup.”Singleton said that preparation is rooted in a broader understanding of what actually drives trafficking around major sporting events.Events like the Super Bowl and the World Cup don’t themselves cause a spike in sex trafficking.
Instead, authorities say, the influx of money and visitors creates conditions that traffickers look to take advantage of.California Top law enforcement officials in Los Angeles said they mobilized federal, state and local agencies throughout California, arresting suspects on suspicion of sex crimes and ensuring that victims were ‘safely rescued.’The Super Bowl prompted the creation of a task force of 67 agencies from Sacramento to Monterey, with a dedicated command center in Sunnyvale staffed by more than 20 analysts from the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office...