Venezuelan soccer player released after nearly three weeks in ICE detention

Venezuelan soccer player Claudia Rodríguez has been released by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after nearly three weeks in detention. The 28-year-old athlete, who is pursuing an asylum claim in the United States, was arrested while trying to travel to North Carolina to meet friends for the 2026 World Cup final.

Rodríguez was held at the Pompano detention center, where her situation garnered attention beyond her family, with many advocating for her release. She had legally entered the U.S. in 2017 on a tourist visa, later applied for asylum, and received Temporary Protected Status (TPS) in 2023.

Democratic Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz was among those who strongly criticized Rodríguez's detention. Schultz accused the Trump administration of targeting Venezuelan migrants following the end of TPS for Venezuela. ICE stated that between July 1 and July 26, it detained 5,605 undocumented immigrants in the Miami area. The agency reiterated that TPS is temporary and was never intended as a de facto amnesty program.

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Temporary means temporary. TPS was never intended as a de facto amnesty program.