NFL Confirms No ICE Deployment at Super Bowl Amid Bay Area Protests

NFL Chief Security Officer Cathy Lanier said on Feb. 3 that there are "no planned ICE or immigration enforcement operations" around the Super Bowl and that more than 35 federal, state and local agencies will support security at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, officials said.

Bay Area activists led by Gabby Chavez-Lopez, executive director of the Latina Coalition of Silicon Valley, and Musa Tariq, policy coordinator for the San Francisco Bay Area Council on American-Islamic Relations, held a Feb. 2 rally in San Jose and announced weeklong protests and volunteer trainings over fears of immigration enforcement, organizers said.

Department of Homeland Security agent Jeffrey Brannigan reinforced Lanier's remarks in response to reporters, while Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin declined to confirm ICE's absence and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem earlier said ICE agents would be "everywhere," marking conflicting federal accounts, officials confirmed.

Lanier said the league will be supported by more than 35 federal, state and local agencies at the game, and the Santa Clara County Rapid Response Network, a coalition of 10 nonprofits, said it has trained dozens of volunteers to document ICE activity and provide emergency legal support, organizers said.

Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said on Feb. 3 that DHS will not disclose future operations and that security will be conducted "in line with the U.S. Constitution," while community groups warned protests throughout Super Bowl week and ahead of June World Cup matches could persist, advocates said.