Concerns have been raised by the confirmed presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers at the 2026 Super Bowl – but the event has previously been used to entrap fugitives by US authorities.
The 2026 Super Bowl will take place in Santa Clara on February 8 with the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks set to contest the 60th edition of the coveted event.
And although US President Donald Trump will not be in attendance due to logistical reasons, his decision to allow ICE agents to be active in Santa Clara has caused controversy.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed the decision with Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs of the DHS, Tricia McLaughlin Yoho, telling TMZ that “those who are here legally” have “nothing to fear”.
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ICE - which is responsible for investigations and removal operations of people the US considers to be in the country illegally - has recently caused outrage as two US citizens, Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti, were shot dead by agents in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in January.
And ahead of the Super Bowl, the debate over ICE’s presence will no doubt continue. But the event has previously been used as a way of capturing fugitives.
Before the 1985 Super Bowl, a sting operation, which became known as Operation Flagship, took place ahead of the match between the Washington Redskins – now Washington Commanders - and the Cincinnati Bengals.
Hundreds of fugitives were told they had been randomly selected to receive free tickets for the occasion from a list of Washington, DC residents.
Despite the game beginning at 1 pm, ticket winners were instructed to arrive at a fake TV station in the morning to collect their passes, which would allow entry into the stadium.
They were also told they would be taken via bus to and from the match.
"We sent out invitations to a little under 3,000 fugitives, to a brunch at the Washington Convention Centre,” said former chief deputy of the US Marshals, Toby Roche, in a 2016 documentary.
Despite having a senior role in the US Marshals, Roche pretended to be an event usher as part of the sting.
"My role were to make sure that the fugitives who turned up were in fact fugitives," he added.
"A 'confirmed winner' was someone who was wanted. A 'double winner' was a dangerous person; someone who'd had aggravated assault, murder, or robbery."
Upon their arrival, fugitives were welcomed by cheerleaders who put their arms around them – or so they thought. The cheerleaders’ job was to see if the fugitives were carrying weapons.
Everything was meticulously planned to appear as normal, with marshals wearing tuxedos while smiling politely to the unsuspecting criminals.
Bob Leschorn, the chief deputy of enforcement in the US Marshals at the time, posed as the CEO of the fictional station Flagship International Sports Television.
"We had 119 extremely lucky individuals, who, by chance, were all wanted on criminal warrants," Leschorn said in the 2016 documentary.
"They won a trip to the DC jail", instead of to the big game, he joked.
Around 120 people turned up out of 3,000 supposed complimentary ticket offerings before over 100 were eventually arrested. Some records suggest the number of arrests made was 101.
Topics: Super Bowl, Donald Trump, NFL
Luke Davies