The SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles belongs to Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke and is set to host eight World Cup matches, including the USA’s opener and a quarter-final.
So any disruption with just over 60 days until the tournament kicks off would give Fifa a serious headache.
UNITE HERE Local 11 represents 2,000 workers including bartenders, cooks and servers at the 70,000-capacity venue.
Co-president Kurt Peterson has unfurled a long list of demands for Fifa and Kroenke, and insists strike action is “pretty realistic” based on how discussions have gone thus far.
The union’s principal demand is that ICE (US immigration enforcement) plays no role at the World Cup.
They also want to ensure Fifa bans the use of AI and automation at the SoFi Stadium, uses profits from the tournament to invest in local housing, and commits to stricter rules on Airbnb rentals that could displace workers.
Union members are free to strike because their bargaining agreement with stadium operator Legends Global has expired.
And there has been little progress towards a new agreement after two rounds of talks.
Peterson told The Athletic: “These games ought to be, but rarely are, something that moves the needle forward for working people.
But instead, they show up, they leave and then the city and the working people often are left in worse conditions than when they came.
At this point, [a strike] is pretty realistic.
Fifa, despite our attempts to engage with them, have basically ignored our demands.
There’s going to be a lot of pressure to make sure the games are successful. But successful for us means that games succeed for everyone, not just for Airbnb, the Fifa president [Gianni Infantino] and Donald Trump.
So far, the indications are that they’re not showing much interest to move on a number of the things we put on the table.”
