Kristi Noem blames Democrats for shutdown holding up $625m in World Cup funding

• Shutdown affecting Fema has caused delay in delivery

• Host city officials concerned about ability to stage events

• Representative Nellie Pou: Time for DHS to do its job'

Kristi Noem, the US homeland security secretary, replied forcefully on Thursday to concerns about a holdup of federal funding for this summer's World Cup, confirming that no funds have been awarded yet" in a post on X. About $625m in grants administered by the Federal Emergency Management Authority (Fema) were authorized last summer and set to be distributed to US host cities to aid with security and planning for the tournament, which will be co-hosted by the US, Canada and Mexico.

Noem's comments follow congressional testimony earlier this week by host city officials who expressed concern that they may not have time to adequately prepare for the tournament if they don't receive the funds in short order.