What was meant to be a celebration of FIFA World Cup volunteers quickly turned into another source of frustration. At a thank-you event for Houston-based volunteers, attendees reported long lines, food shortages and more. When Eddie Maisonet III spoke to over a dozen volunteers at the event for Chron, some of their experiences shocked everyone.
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“I regret volunteering for FIFA and for going to the thank you event,” a volunteer said. “I waited in the bracelet line for two hours and they said that they cut the line, they’re out. I went to the tote line and waited in line, when I got there, I was told that they’re out too!”
There was even a food shortage, as many volunteers complained they didn’t get much even after RSVP’ing. “They did run out of food. I was probably one of the first 40-50 people in line. And probably not even 30 or 20 minutes after I got in line, they ran out of food, only had meatballs left when I was walking past.”
The thank-you event was the bare minimum FIFA could do for the volunteers, according to some. “It felt like it was just the bare minimum that Houston had to do just to fulfill FIFA’s needs or standards,” said a volunteer who has been doing the job in Houston for years now.
When FIFA invited applications for 65,000 positions in August 2025, the world body revealed it received over 1.1 million applications. After multiple tryouts and arduous interviews, 50,000 volunteers were hired. And some among them wanted better treatment.
“I’m grateful to FIFA for picking me… However, I wish it could have been planned and executed a lot better,” volunteer Kaylonna F told Chron.
“There were volunteers who were passing out from heat stroke and heat exhaustion because there was no water,” Kaylonna revealed how a few volunteers suffered during the World Cup. Kaylonna even highlighted how some faced security concerns after volunteering for late-night matches and fan fests.
Before the tournament, FIFA President Infantino praised the volunteers, saying they are the “heart, soul, and smile of FIFA tournaments.” But the reality at the tournament was far from what the president’s words implied, according to the volunteers.
