By Dronelife Features Editor Jim Magill
Federal officials on Monday urged drone operators to stay away from Lumen Field, which will be temporarily named Seattle Stadium, as it serves as the site of six FIFA World Cup 2026 matches, over the next several weeks.
“We’re putting the word out there to recreational drone users that using drones around the stadium is not going to be acceptable and they could potentially be prosecuted,” Trent Heinrichs, special agent in charge of the U.S. Secret Service Seattle Field Office. “So just in an abundance of caution and for the safety and security of all the fans and all the international visitors, the community of Seattle we’ve declared a no-drone zone.”
Heinrichs made his remarks at a press conference held at the U.S. Coast Guard Base Seattle to discuss security preparations for the World Cup games, scheduled to get underway at Lumen Field on June 15.
The event was one of a series of press conferences held in U.S. cities serving as hosts of the FIFA activities in which officials have stressed the need for drone operators to abide by the temporary flight restrictions the FAA will impose on match days.
FAA Bans All Aircraft Within 3 Nautical Miles of Seattle Stadium on Match Days
“All aircraft operations, including drones, will be prohibited within a 3-nautical-mile radius and up to 3,000 feet above ground level,” the FAA announced. The Seattle TFR will remain in effect on June 15, 19, 24 and 26, and July 1 and 6.
Heinrichs, who serves as the federal coordinator for the World Cup events in Seattle, said the flight restrictions are being imposed out of “an abundance of caution,” to ensure the safety of match participants and spectators.
“As you’ve seen, around the world, drones are being used for nefarious purposes,” he said.
“Drones are capable of carrying payloads, and when we’re talking about payloads, it’s potentially explosives,” Heinrichs said. “Obviously we’re hoping that doesn’t happen. But for the safety of everyone, it’s best to have those temporary flight restrictions in place and declare all the venues as no-drone zones.”
FBI Warns Drone Operators: Violations Mean Fines, Confiscation, and Federal Charges
Karen Valaas, assistant special agent in charge of the FBI Seattle field office, reiterated the call for compliance with the FAA’s rules and cited the potential consequences of flouting them.
“Unsafe and improper use of a drone poses a physical hazard to other aircraft in the sky, as well as individuals on the ground, and can violate federal law,” she said.
“Drone operators who enter restricted airspace without authorization will face fines up to $100,000, confiscation of their drones, and federal criminal or felony or misdemeanor charges, with the FBI identifying operators, seizing drones, and supporting prosecutions.”
She urged all drone operators to check for active flight restrictions before every flight, using FAA-approved Before You Fly apps or by going online to TFR.FAA.GOV. She said World Cup-related sites will display posters, designating the area as a no-drone zone and displaying QR codes which will take visitors to the FAA website.
In addition, Valaas called on the general public to help officials deal with the potential threats of improperly operated UAVs at FIFA-related sites. “If you observe unsafe or improper use of a drone, please report it to the FBI tip line at 1-800-CALL-FBI or TIPS.FBI.GOV,” she said.
Two-Plus Years of Security Preparations
Federal officials and their state and local law enforcement and emergency response partners have spent the better part of the last three years preparing to establish security protocols designed to ensure the safe operation of what Heinrichs described as the largest and most complex sporting event in the history of the world.
“We have 48 teams, 104 matches across three countries in North America,” Heinrichs said. “Seventy of those matches are here in the United States across 11 host cities, and Seattle is very fortunate to be one of them.”
The role of the federal coordination team is to help the federal government’s state and local partners, whether it’s by providing specialized experience or expertise, technical expertise, personnel, resources or equipment, he said.
“And I’ve got to tell you, it is an unprecedented collaborative effort across federal, local and state agencies,” he said. “And our role as a federal coordination team is to help our state and local partners in any capacity that they need, whether it’s specialized experience or expertise, technical expertise, personnel, resources, equipment.”
Millions Allocated for Security, Counter-UAS
The federal government has poured millions of dollars into the security preparation for the FIFA World Cup events in Seattle and the other 10 host cities. Scott Zaffran, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Region Ten director of disaster response, said FEMA has awarded the state of Washington $32 million to strengthen security, cybersecurity and emergency response at the Seattle matches as part of a package of $624 million in grants earmarked for FIFA host cities.
Zaffran, one of four federal coordinators on the Seattle Federal Coordination Team, said the state has also received more than $19 million in FEMA grant monies for counter-UAS equipment and training to protect the airspace over the stadium.
“During the event, the federal coordination team will stand up the Seattle Federal Interagency Coordination Center, and it will be based out of FEMA’s Bothell office. In person and virtually, representatives from over 30 federal agencies will be in coordination and communication to share information and to address complex problems as they arise,” he said.
Counter-UAS Preparations Not Revealed
Although the feds are taking the lead in establishing counter-UAS capabilities to protect the World Cup-related sites in host cities, the officials at the Seattle press conference did not reveal much detailed information about the counter-drone plans for the city.
In a recent interview with DroneLife, high-ranking FBI official Michael Torphy, described how the FBI would share counter-UAS responsibility at stadiums hosting World Cup matches with several DHS agencies, including Customs and Border Protection, Federal Protective Service and the U.S. Coast Guard.
However, citing security concerns, officials with the FBI and other federal agencies have been tight-lipped about providing details of the type of counter-UAS technologies that would be deployed at each FIFA-related site.
In a separate email statement, Washington National Guard Lt. Col. Wes Watson indicated that the Guard might play a support role in providing counter-UAS equipment to help the World Cup security preparations in Seattle.
“We are in conversation right now with our local partners to discuss how some new counter-sUAS equipment provided to our Civil Support Team can support the mission. But at this point, that support hasn’t been requested,” said Watson, the counter-UAS lead for the Guard’s Commander’s Action Group.
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Jim Magill is a Houston-based writer with almost a quarter-century of experience covering technical and economic developments in the oil and gas industry. After retiring in December 2019 as a senior editor with S&P Global Platts, Jim began writing about emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence, robots and drones, and the ways in which they’re contributing to our society. In addition to DroneLife, Jim is a contributor to Forbes.com and his work has appeared in the Houston Chronicle, U.S. News & World Report, and Unmanned Systems, a publication of the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International
