2026 World Cup: Only three cops to accompany 10,000 England fans in US

If there was more out there we could try and reduce the risk and make it a little easier for everyone, but it is what it is and we do the best we can with the resources we deploy.

“In Germany we sent 40, because it was a request from the Germans and they provided financial support.

“In this case, the Americans are not sold on the idea of ​​mobile delegation. They are not funding it, so it will be a small deployment.

“We are not criticizing this, it is their operation, they do the police. We see the benefit of the spotters, as I think most European countries do, which gives us the opportunity to have more coverage of people with really good experience who will be in contact with the fans and the FA.

“But if we want to get fans out of the city center and welcome them there at the ground, you can’t be in two places at the same time. So that limits our ability to do that.”

The White House World Cup Task Force has been approached for comment.

“We know the behavior of the fans. The States don’t necessarily have a football fan culture in the same way. It’s very different.

“There are 18,000 law enforcement agencies in the United States, so they’ve had different exposures to the people who control things.

“The behavior of our fans at tournaments in recent years has been exemplary, so we’re starting from a good place. I think one of the key reasons we’re so excited to send a team is that it gives us the opportunity to brief local law enforcement.”

“So we always want to be there to talk to fans if their behavior causes offense. Likewise, to local law enforcement, “It’s not a problem. This is a normal behavior. So we’re going to be more limited in that.”