US Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin has said federal authorities became highly effective at detecting and disabling drones during security operations for the FIFA World Cup, revealing that agencies brought down nearly 2,000 unauthorised drones over the course of the tournament. He said the response teams grew so proficient that some drones were intercepted before their operators could even remove them from vehicles, illustrating the scale and sophistication of the counter-drone effort mounted around the event.

Mullin made the comments this week while discussing broader security matters, including a separate incident involving an "incendiary device" detonated at a federal building in New York. The near-2,000 figure underscores the extent of the airspace security operation surrounding the World Cup, though the article does not detail the specific methods used, the geographic spread of incidents, or whether any arrests resulted from the interceptions.