Fact Check: Did Trump order ICE to arrest 67,000 NFL fans who booed him?

Spectators booed loudly when Pre Donald Trump appeared on the video board with Mike Johnson late in the first half and again at halftime
PUBLISHED NOV 13, 2025
Numerous fans booed President Donald Trump during the November 9, 2025, NFL game between the Washington Commanders and Detroit Lions (Lauren Leigh Bacho/Getty Images)
Numerous fans booed President Donald Trump during the November 9, 2025, NFL game between the Washington Commanders and Detroit Lions (Lauren Leigh Bacho/Getty Images)

LANDOVER, MARYLAND: Viral social media posts claim that on November 9, 2025, President Donald Trump ordered Immigration and Customs Enforcement to take into custody 67,000 spectators at the NFL game in Maryland because they booed him.

But how much of this claim holds? Let’s find out.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (L) applauds U.S. President Donald Trump during the NFL football game between the Detroit Lions and Washington Commanders at Northwest Stadium on November 9, 2025 in Landover, Maryland. Trump attended the game to honor military veterans during halftime of the game. (Photo by John McDonnell/Getty Images)
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (L) applauds US President Donald Trump during the NFL football game between the Detroit Lions and Washington Commanders at Northwest Stadium on November 9, 2025 in Landover, Maryland (John McDonnell/Getty Images)

Claim: Trump ordered ICE to arrest 67,000 NFL fans who booed him

A rumor that US President Donald Trump ordered Immigration and Customs Enforcement to arrest 67,000 fans who booed him at a Nov 9, 2025, football game in Maryland circulated online (archived) in the days after the game.

A post by Andy Borowitz on Facebook on Wednesday, November 12, went viral, which included a picture of Trump from the game with a caption, “Trump Orders ICE to Arrest 67,000 NFL Fans Who Booed Him.”



Meanwhile, the same person uploaded another post on the same issues, stating, “In a move that tests the limits of presidential power, on Wednesday Donald J Trump ordered ICE agents to arrest the 67,000 football fans who booed him at Sunday’s Washington Commanders game. This should never be allowed to happen in this country,” Trump said, adding that the booing fans “were paid by Soros.

Justifying his use of immigration agents, Trump accused all those who booed him of being in a Venezuelan drug cartel."



He added, "Elaborating on his claim, Trump said, “Despite our successful air strikes off the coast of Venezuela, somehow 67,000 of these criminals got through.”

Furthermore, the same person on Facebook who had a website BorowitzReport.com posted the same content.

Fact Check: Trump did not order ICE to arrest 67,000 NFL fans who booed him

The viral social media claim that Trump ordered ICE to arrest 67,000 football fans who booed him at a November 9, 2025, game in Maryland is false and originated as satire. 

The story appeared in ‘The Borowitz Report,’ a website and social media presence operated by Andy Borowitz, who identifies his work as satirical news. 



The false report went on to say that Trump called the booing fans a Venezuelan drug cartel. It is to be noted that no major news media reported about such an event or quote, and searching for the quote online only results in the Borowitz satirical story.

About Andy Borowitz and The Borowitz Report

Borowitz, a long-time humorist, openly labels his work as satirical. His website ‘about’ says, "I’ve been writing satirical news since I was eighteen. This represents either commitment to a genre or arrested development."

Website bio of The Borowitz Report (Screenshot/The Borowitz Report)
Website bio of The Borowitz Report (Screenshot/The Borowitz Report)

While ‘The Borowitz Report’ ran as a column in The New Yorker for 25 years, since the column ended in 2023 for financial reasons, Borowitz now publishes his work on his own website and via social media.

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