Land of the Fee makes life difficult for African soccer fans

The United States seems determined to make life as difficult as possible for soccer fans from "unfriendly" countries hoping to attend the World Cup.

In addition to sky high ticket prices and inflated transport costs, there are also issues over visas and visa bonds.

Fans from five African nations this week got a potential $US15,000 saving - provided they are already in possession of match tickets.

The Trump administration confirmed that ticket-holding supporters from Algeria, Cape Verde, Cote d'Ivoire, Senegal and Tunisia will now be exempt from the outrageous requirement to post a bond before entering the "land of the fee".

The five were among 50 countries included in the requirement, which is intended to reduce visa overstays and was part of a wider immigration crackdown (apparently focused on black folk) by the White House.

But African fans planning a trip to a tournament spread across the US, Canada and Mexico from June 11 to July 19 still neede to have plenty of cash.

"We are waiving visa bonds for qualified fans who bought World Cup tickets," US assistant secretary of state for consular affairs Mora Namdar said in a media statement.

But in order to have the bond requirement waived, ticket holders from affected countries must have registered with the online FIFA Pass system by April 15. If not, tough luck.

Travellers from Cote d'Ivoire and Senegal are targeted. Those who did not secure their visas before December will not be granted entry to the US.

BBC Sport Africa also reported that some Ghanaians have been denied US entry visas.

Image: Cote d'Ivoire fans

New reasons to avoid the United States of Lunacy

The United States is becoming increasingly - and dangerously - unstable.

Emboldened after being given a made-up "peace" award by a corrupt sporting organisation, Mad King Donald - the Titan of Tariffs - becomes crazier by the day.

From blowing up ships he thinks might be transporting drugs, allowing ICE goons to harass US citizens going about their legal business, to threatening to close down media organisations whose views he dislikes, the Trumpster is taking US dangerously close to the brink of dictatorship.

His teams of various drunks, warmongers, genocide enablers and sex pests blatantly ignore international laws and conventions.

This is “the land of the free”, where criminals, conmen, sexists and pardoned drug dealers thrive.

Pardons are dangled in front of would-be donors and jackbooted thugs wearing face masks legally roam the streets.

Oh. And the price gouge is on across the country ahead of the 2026 World Cup - and eyes are firmly fixed on how to get hands on Venezuela's oil riches.

The rest of the world looks on aghast - but too petrified to speak out.

Now Agent Orange’s administration is moving to dramatically expand digital screening for foreign visitors - potentially further damaging an already ailing tourism industry.

The Trumpian administration this week proposed a new rule that would require virtually all tourists entering the United States to disclose five years of social media activity, along with extensive personal and family information.

The plan, published in a Federal Register notice by the increasingly emboldened US Customs and Border Protection (CBP), would apply to arrivals from every country.

This would then include those currently eligible to enter without a visa through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA).

Among nations benefiting of the ESTA are Australia, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, most European Union countries and the UK.

Traditionallly allies, in other words.

Under the proposal, applicants would be required to submit usernames associated with all social media platforms used in the past five years, as well as all phone numbers and email addresses from the same period.

CBP also seeks to collect detailed information about close family members, including names, birth dates, birthplaces, addresses, and phone numbers.

The disclosures, described in the notice as “mandatory,” would mark a major expansion of digital vetting for tens of millions of travelers from countries.

Heaven forbid if you should be critical of a US politician. 

The (US) public has until February 9 to submit comments about the proposals. The rest of us should shut up. America First. 

The Department of Homeland Security declined to comment on the proposal when asked by various media outlets.

But the move comes amid a sweeping hard-line turn on immigration and border controls since the tanned/sleepy one took over the US presidency last January.

Tourism industry officials have warned the latest measures could deliver another blow to an already weakened sector.

International travel to the US has fallen sharply since early 2025. It is no mystery as to why.

Are US travellers ready to embrace fast trains?

Inter-city trains have never been a big thing in the US. High-speed rail links are almost non-existent as Americans traditionally prefer to travel point to point in their gas-guzzling cars.

But now the US Administration has approved $US3 billion in funding from its Bipartisan Infrastructure fund for the Brightline West high-speed rail project.

This plans to connect Las Vegas to Southern California and is scheduled for completion in time for the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028. It projects journeys would take 2 hours, 15 minutes. 

It will become the first true high-speed rail system in the US, Travel Mole reports.

“The dream of American high-speed rail is about to become reality,” said Ray LaHood Co-Chair of the U.S. High-Speed Rail Coalition, a former US Secretary of Transportation.

“We greatly appreciate the commitment of the Biden Administration, our Coalition members and many others who have worked hard to spark America’s high-speed rail revolution,” LaHood said.

Andy Kunz, CEO of US High Speed Rail said: “Electrified bullet trains will transform the nation’s transportation system, reducing congestion and helping end our dependency on fossil fuels.

“This investment by the Biden Administration represents a milestone in advancing our progress.”

The new route is part of a planned West Coast Corridor connecting Las Vegas, Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Other high-speed rail lines planned for the future include in Texas and a cross border connection from Vancouver in Canada to Portland and Seattle.

The Las Vegas project is not government run but a private-public partnership led by Brightline, a Florida-based company that runs a successful commuter line within that state. including Orlando, Fort Lauderdale and Miami.

Victorian wines to get a higher US profile

 

Wine drinkers in the US are about to be blitzed by a $2.2 million sales campaign by Wine Victoria.

The USA Market Development Strategy aims to increase premium Victorian wine sales in the south and south-east states of the US.

The new strategy - funded by the Victorian Government through Global Victoria - will see Wine Victoria deliver a number of programs over the coming years to amplify the presence of Victorian wine in the region, and help grow its market.

The USA Market Development Strategy is divided into two phases and will be completed by mid 2024.

The program focuses on five core initiatives: 

# Supporting new entrants to the US market primarily through the Wine Australia Market Entry Program.

# Trade promotions with distributors, retailers, restaurants, and e-commerce platforms

# Attendance at selected trade shows

# Communications to build awareness and engage with trade and consumers.

# Appointment of a US-based business development manager to drive the program and support wineries.

Chair of Wine Victoria, Stephanie Duboudin, said the USA Market Development Strategy is an exciting opportunity for Victorian wine producers.

“These programs and activations are a great way for Wine Victoria members to showcase the quality of their wines and to tell their own unique stories on a global scale," she said.

“Wine Victoria is delighted to be working with the Victorian Government and Global Victoria to amplify Victorian wine in the United States, and to create more ways to educate people on the diverse and world-class wine styles grown and produced in our beautiful state.”

Wineries wanting to be involved in the USA Market Development Strategy Program can email secretariat@winevictoria.org.au 

# Wine Victoria is the peak body representing the Victorian wine industry.

Image: Dal Zotto vineyard, King Valley. Supplied

Unvaccinated visitors told: stay away from the US of A

If you are not fully vaccinated against Covid-19 then you can forget about entering the United States any time soon.

The administration has outlined the entry requirements for foreign travellers visiting the US as it opens to visitors on November 8, Business Traveller reported. 

US President Joe Biden signed a proclamation this week imposing new vaccine requirements for most foreign air travellers. 

The new rules replace the 212 (f) restrictions that began at the outset of the pandemic and banned travellers from countries including the UK, Ireland, all Schengen countries, Brazil, South Africa, India, and China.

From early November, travellers must provide proof of double vaccination, as well as a negative Covid-19 test result taken within three days of departure. Both PCR and antigen tests can be used for entry.

Biden’s proclamation states: “It is in the interests of the United States to move away from the country-by-country restrictions previously applied during the Covid-19 pandemic and to adopt an air travel policy that relies primarily on vaccination to advance the safe resumption of international air travel to the United States.”

Airlines will be required to check travellers’ vaccination status before they can board flights to the US, confirm that the proof of vaccination comes from an “official source” and that it was received at least two weeks before departure.

 The US is currently accepting any vaccines approved by the Federal Drug Administration and World Health Organisation.

Airlines operating flights to the US will also need to collect personal information from passengers for contact tracing purposes. This information will be kept on file for 30 days to allow health officials to get in touch with anyone who may have been exposed to Covid-19.

Travellers under the age of 18 will be exempt from the vaccine requirements, in addition to those with medical conditions, but they must still provide proof of a negative Covid-19 test.