DHS affirms collaborative Super Bowl security initiative

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced that it has worked with state and local law enforcement personnel to ensure employee, player, and fan safety during Super Bowl LVI.  

“The Department of Homeland Security is fundamentally a department of partnerships, and those partnerships are critical to ensuring the safety and security of Super Bowl operations as well as that of the surrounding community,” DHS Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas said. “Our dedicated DHS workforce is working collaboratively alongside our federal, state, and local partners to provide operational and technical support to the NFL, City of Inglewood, and the State of California to keep this national event safe. Just like the game itself, vigilance is a team effort, so please remember: if you see something, say something.”

DHS indicated over 500 agency personnel would provide air and maritime security resources; anti-human trafficking prevention and enforcement support; intellectual property enforcement; chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosives detection technologies; venue, cyber, and infrastructure security assessments; and intelligence analysis and threat assessments.

DHS has categorized Super Bowl LVI as a Special Event Assessment Rating (SEAR) Level 1, which means the agency has determined the event to be significant, with national and international importance – requiring extensive federal support.

Federal entities involved in the security initiative, per officials, include the Coast Guard; the Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Office; Customs and Border Protection; the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency; the Federal Emergency Management Agency; Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations; the Office of Intelligence and Analysis; and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.