As World Cup nears, intelligence agency warns of increased human trafficking risk

OTTAWA — As Canada prepares to host World Cup soccer, the federal financial intelligence agency is warning that major sporting events can heighten the risk of vulnerable people being exploited by human traffickers.

A new bulletin from the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada advises businesses to look out for signs of money transactions that could be linked to trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation or forced labour.

The agency, better known as Fintrac, identifies cash linked to money laundering by filtering through millions of pieces of information each year from banks, credit unions, money service businesses, casinos and others.

Fintrac discloses the resulting intelligence to police and security partners, including the Canadian Security Intelligence Service and the RCMP.

Fintrac says it made 316 disclosures of actionable financial intelligence in 2024-25 to law enforcement agencies in support of their human trafficking investigations. These disclosures identified 538 subjects of interest and supported 26 project-level investigations, the agency says.

Canada, Mexico and the United States are co-hosting the World Cup from June 11 to July 19.

The tournament brings together 48 countries for 104 games, including 13 matches in Toronto and Vancouver.

Major international sporting and entertainment events can draw hundreds of thousands of domestic and international visitors to host cities, the bulletin notes.

These events may be associated with an increased risk of sexual exploitation, particularly when the influx fuels demand for accommodations, nightlife, entertainment and commercial sexual services near event venues and transportation hubs, Fintrac says.

As demand rises, the risks to vulnerable people may increase as traffickers adapt their operations to capitalize on the boom in economic activity, the bulletin warns.

It says sexual exploitation linked to major events may be facilitated through online advertising on escort platforms, classified advertising websites and social media.

“Advertisements may reference event specific themes, nearby venues, or limited-time availability, and may emphasize geographic proximity or appeal directly to visiting clientele,” the bulletin says.

Major events may offer traffickers an opportunity to boost activity or move victims to areas where there is increased demand for their services.

Large events also can spur demand for workers in sectors including hospitality, accommodation, cleaning, construction, transportation and security, the bulletin says.

“Heightened labour demand in these sectors may create opportunities for traffickers to exploit vulnerable individuals through deceptive, coercive, or exploitative recruitment and employment practices.”

Financial activity associated with labour trafficking may be intermingled with legitimate business revenues and payroll‑related transactions, the bulletin adds.

Businesses covered by the law governing Fintrac must file a suspicious transaction report if there are reasonable grounds to suspect that a financial dealing is related to money laundering, terrorist financing or a sanctions evasion offence.

The bulletin advises businesses submitting reports related to possible human trafficking to include all relevant information that might assist in identifying the nature and context of the activity.

Fintrac says signs of financial dealings linked to commercial sexual exploitation could include clusters of expenses for hotels, or short‑term rentals that coincide with frequent late‑night or early‑morning automated banking machine withdrawals, particularly in event host cities.

Another such sign might be payments made for online escort advertisements on behalf of multiple individuals by a single account holder.

The bulletin says one indicator associated with forced or exploitative labour could be frequent transfers between business and personal accounts, including circular movements of funds or generic payment descriptions without a clear business rationale.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 28, 2026.

Jim Bronskill, The Canadian Press