ICE Raids Threaten to Quell an Exciting Summer of Boxing Events
- Matthew Brown
- Jun 24
- 4 min read
The summer of 2025 was shaping up to be one of the most electric in recent boxing history. Massive fights were on the schedule in cities like Anaheim, Queens, Las Vegas, and New York — from Jake Paul’s crossover clash with Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. to Edgar Berlanga’s return, to a historic showdown between Canelo Alvarez and Terence Crawford. But a growing threat outside the ring is now casting a long shadow over the sport’s biggest stages.
There is increasing concern among fighters, promoters, and fans that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) may use these high-profile boxing events as opportunities to conduct raids and detain undocumented immigrants. Operators across the boxing industry are left asking: What can be done — and what will this do to live event attendance?
The fear isn’t theoretical. ICE has disproportionately focused its efforts on Latino and Hispanic communities — the very backbone of boxing in America. In recent weeks, immigration enforcement agencies have targeted businesses, neighborhoods, and events with heavy Latino attendance. The optics, and the impact, are already unsettling.
On June 19, ICE agents reportedly showed up at Dodger Stadium — not for a game, but to request access to the parking lots. The Los Angeles Dodgers organization, to their credit, refused to allow the agents on the premises. Still, the message was clear: no place, no matter how iconic or family-oriented, is off limits.
This kind of enforcement has many in the boxing world deeply concerned. “This ICE shit is costing a lot,” one prominent boxing executive told us. “Not just in terms of business, but morale. Boxing lives on its Latino base — if you scare them away, you’re gutting the sport from the inside.”
The federal government’s posture has only intensified those fears. In a recent social media post, President Donald Trump encouraged ICE “to do all in their power to achieve the very important goal of delivering the single largest Mass Deportation Program in History.” He went further, urging officials to expand their presence in major U.S. cities like Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York, where “Millions upon Millions of Illegal Aliens reside.”
These threats are not just political posturing. Earlier this month, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) promoted its involvement in security operations around FIFA’s Club World Cup. One since-deleted post read, “Suited and booted, ready to provide security for the first round of games.” Another post from CBP’s official social media warned, “Together, CBP Office of Field Operations, CBP Air and Marine Operations and U.S. Border Patrol have a strong presence so you can focus on the game.”
But what about those who can’t focus on the game?
NBC News reported that ICE confirmed it would play a role in tournament security and added a chilling advisory: “All non-American citizens need to carry proof of their legal status.”
This kind of rhetoric and enforcement has sent a wave of anxiety through boxing’s most devoted communities — the very people who fill the arenas, bring the energy, and buy the pay-per-views.
Saturday’s Jake Paul vs. Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. fight in Anaheim is shaping up to be a test case. Will the turnout match the hype? Or will ICE’s looming presence keep fans at home?
The July 12 fight card in Queens, New York, promoted by Turki Alalshikh, is another battleground. Headlined by Edgar Berlanga vs. Hamzah Sheeraz and Shakur Stevenson vs. William Zepeda, the event was supposed to celebrate the depth of Latin talent in boxing. Instead, it’s struggling. Ticket sales have been nearly nonexistent. Some blame the venue; others wonder whether the real culprit is fear. “People aren’t going to come if they think they’re going to get rounded up,” said a veteran matchmaker. “Plain and simple.”
A week later, on July 19, Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) hosts a blockbuster in Las Vegas, with living legend Manny Pacquiao returning against Mario Barrios. Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz, a Mexican favorite, faces countryman Angel Fierro. On paper, it’s a guaranteed sellout. But in the current climate, that’s far from certain.
Then, on September 13, the sport’s biggest star — Canelo Alvarez — headlines a mega-event against Terence Crawford, again under Alalshikh’s banner. It’s the kind of transcendent fight that boxing dreams are made of. Yet the question remains: Will his fans even feel safe enough to show up?
Canelo has spoken out. “Mexicans should not live their lives in fear,” he said in a recent press appearance. But the message may not be enough to counter the chilling effect ICE has already had on boxing events.
Across the country, protests are mounting. In Los Angeles — a city synonymous with boxing and home to massive Latino communities — demonstrations have been held condemning the aggressive targeting of public events and neighborhoods. Activists have called out the racial profiling inherent in many of the operations, pointing to a disturbing trend: agents detaining Latinos and Hispanics indiscriminately, only sorting out legal status after the fact.
Fans we spoke to were blunt. “I’m not going,” one longtime Canelo Alvarez supporter said. “I’m not risking my family’s safety for a fight.”
Boxing has always been a sport of the people — gritty, real, communal. But now, those very people are being driven away from the arenas that once welcomed them.
What’s unfolding isn’t just an immigration issue. It’s a cultural crisis with real consequences for a sport that lives and breathes through its Latino heartbeat.
And unless something changes, this exciting summer of boxing might become one that’s remembered for everything but the fights.
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