Should Non-Americans Be Wary of Travelling to WSOP 2025?
Disruptor-In-Chief No matter what your political persuasion, there is one undeniable thing about current US President Donald Trump and that
Should Non-Americans Be Wary of Travelling to WSOP 2025?
Disruptor-In-Chief
No matter what your political persuasion, there is one undeniable thing about current US President Donald Trump and that is how he is an agent of chaos. Trade Wars have been started, paused and started again in the same news cycle. Executive Orders are being signed on a daily basis. Under the Disruptor-in-Chief, established deals and longstanding agreements are not worth the paper on which they are written. In short, trust is gone.
With the WSOP on the horizon, many international poker players are booking their annual pilgrimages to the desert and, in this uncertain climate, one wonders if some people are reconsidering taking the trip. A few weeks ago, Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt took her usual spot at the podium and delivered some disconcerting news about travel to the USA. Reading from a statement, she said: “All foreign nationals present in the United States longer than 30 days must register with the federal government. Failure to comply with this is a crime punishable by fines, imprisonment, or both… If not, you will be arrested, fined, deported, never to return to our country again. ”
A lot of people who enter America on vacation do so with an Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA) or a B-2 tourist visa. That is how the majority of poker players cross the border. Arguably, for some, poker constitutes work which would technically require a H-1 B-1 but rather than open that can of worms, most take their chances and tick ‘leisure’. With both the ESTA and B-2 visa, the person is registered but there is ambiguity whether a stay of over 30 days would require a second registration.
As of now, according to the US Citizenship and Immigration Service, any foreigner, 14 years old or older, coming to the US for 30 days or longer will have to go through specific federal registration and being fingerprinted, if they have not already done that as part of their visa application. They are also obliged to carry evidence of registration on their person at all times. Failure to supply this evidence if approached by law enforcement is a misdemeanor, the penalty for which is a fine of up to $5,000 or imprisonment up to 30 days, or both.
Real Policy or Scaremongering?
As is often the case with Trump decrees, many are sceptical about whether he means what he says, thinking that it could just be the latest scaremongering tactic, designed to dissuade people from entering the US. Others think that it is a false alarm and that having your passport with tourist visa and I-94 information close at hand would suffice if you were stopped and questioned.
Technically, people with an ESTA do not need to register with the federal government because ESTA is a pre-screening process for travelers from Visa Waiver Program countries. They allow entry to the US for up to 90 days for tourism, business or transit without a visa. Once approved, no further registration is supposed to be required unless your ESTA reaches its two-year expiry or your passport is out of date.
Personally, I think that the larger issue for travelling international poker players is the very real possibility that the Trump administration will concoct a new rule while they are at the WSOP and the visa or visa waiver that got them into the country suddenly stops being valid. As a result, my hunch is that the non-American players going to Vegas this Summer will be significantly down from past years. I predict a large dropoff of international players this year, many of whom will be patriotic Canadians who have chosen to boycott the US.
Trump’s tariffs were deployed on countries across the globe in a scattergun fashion a few weeks ago but one country that he set his sights on early was America’s neighbour to the north. Canada was hit with a 25% tariff and, in response, Ottawa issued $42 billion worth of counter-tariffs, with additional tariffs specifically on the US auto sector. Trump has expressed a desire for Canada to join the US as its 51st state, something the Canadian government was quick to strongly reject. A couple of months ago, former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau urged his fellow citizens to “choose Canada” and have staycations rather than going to the US. Since those statements, there has been a substantial drop (around 35%) in the number of Canadians travelling south of the border. To bring it back to poker, Canadians usually make up 5% of WSOP fields.
Pro-Palestine or Anti-Trump Social Media posts might be flagged
There is another factor which I believe may discourage others from travelling. On November 21, 2024, the Pre-Trial Chamber I of the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benyamine Netanyahu and his then-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Gaza from at least October 8, 2023 to May 20, 2024. The previous administration of President Joe Biden was quick to voice opposition to the ruling, stating “we fundamentally reject the court’s decision to issue arrest warrants for senior Israeli officials” and, with a few exceptions, US politicians from both major parties are in lockstep with that perspective.
Nonetheless, there are a great many in Europe and elsewhere who agree with the ICC’s ruling and have been vociferous over the past 12 months, attending pro-Palestinian rallies and posting pro-Palestinian viewpoints along with criticisms of Israel on their social media. US Immigration officers have the ability to check the social media accounts of travellers entering the US and it is not beyond the bounds of possibility that a person with these outspoken beliefs be refused entry.
The way it has been going, it’s also likely that any anti-Trump or anti-MAGA posts would be flagged. Of late, the president has set his sights on the fourth estate, not just undermining it with his usual ‘fake news’ accusations but openly attacking the press. In recent weeks, some White House press core journalists have their accreditations revoked in favour of ‘new media’ which panders to Trump’s ideology and agenda.
Stats Show Number of Foreign Arrivals to US Dropping
I think the biggest indicators, however, that the WSOP numbers will be affected are the broader statistics since Trump has come into office. According to the National Travel and Tourism Office, between January and March, foreign arrivals dropped by around 4.4% compared to those months last year. At Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the busiest airport in the world and a hub for international connections, 189,973 non-US passengers passed through its terminals between March 1 and April 7 this year, 5% fewer than that same period last year.
Taking questions from reporters in the Oval Office on Wednesday April 23rd, Trump was asked “why is travel to the US from Western Europe down over 12%?” His one word reply was ‘Nationalism’, to which the reporter followed up, asking “do you think some people are scared to come here because they hear the stories of tourists who are detained for a few days, or a week or two?” Trump responded by saying “no, we treat our tourists great. We are the tourism capital of the world”.
While that statement is factually inaccurate, tourism is certainly one of the leading industries in the US, contributing 2.5% to its gross domestic product so a decline in overseas visitors will have significant long-term consequence for the economy. In the case of the WSOP Main Event, around 30% of the field is non-US so it would be reasonable to assume some small but still significant drop-off.
Advice for Foreigners Who Decide to Play the WSOP
Despite the concerns and uncertainty, plenty of players are still going to attend this year’s WSOP. The stock market might be down, cryptocurrency might be down and living costs are up but that won’t stop lots and lots of players from making their way to the biggest festival of wealth redistribution on the planet. It is therefore prudent to end with some advice for non-Americans who plan to chase bracelets.
First and foremost, right before you travel, you should log on to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services website for the most up to date information about what documents are required. Secondly, if you are doing a big WSOP and staying beyond 30 days, prepare all the necessary documents and book your accommodation in advance. If you need clarification on any of this, you can contact the US embassy in your country for assistance and best information. Thirdly, make sure that you cross the US border at a legal point of entry and always carry evidence on your person of being in the country legally.
Finally, if you are travelling from Europe, it might be especially prudent to travel via Dublin Airport. There are no direct flights from Ireland to Las Vegas in the Summertime but the benefit of doing so is that you pass through immigration on the Irish side. That means if something was to go awry at the border, you wouldn’t have done the long haul portion of your journey only to get turned away.
Cards are in the air for the WSOP 2025 on May 27th and the Series will give away 100 bracelets in live events across seven weeks of competition. Will Paris and Horseshoe host record fields? It’s certainly possible but my inkling is that numbers will be down somewhat, probably 3-7% from last year.
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