Stadium workers near Los Angeles vote to authorize a strike days before the World Cup begins

Source: AP

By AMY TAXIN
Updated 9:28 PM CDT, June 5, 2026

INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Stadium workers near Los Angeles have voted to authorize a strike as the venue prepares to host the U.S. men’s soccer team’s opening World Cup match.

It doesn’t guarantee that the 2,000 bartenders, servers, cooks and dishwashers at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, will walk off the job. But it gives them the option to do so after contract talks have stalled with the stadium’s food service provider.

The vote comes days before the stadium near Los Angeles will host the U.S. team’s opening World Cup match against Paraguay. Union member Yolanda Fierro said that unless a deal is reached workers could go on strike for the June 12 match.

Fierro said workers are concerned about pay and security on the job amid ramped-up immigration enforcement under President Donald Trump’s administration. Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said this week the U.S. Department of Homeland Security told him federal authorities would be at the matches to assist with security but not civil immigration enforcement.


A general view shows SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif., Tuesday, May 12, 2026, during a media event for the upcoming FIFA World Cup soccer tournament.. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong,File)

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/world-cup-los-angeles-stadium-strike-workers-eaf226eb53b09bde00d400f66f699809