Securing the Big Stage: Key Takeaways From SIA’s 2026 Vertical Insights Stadium Security Symposium

As the United States prepares to host some of the largest sporting and cultural events in its history—including the 2026 FIFA World Cup, America 250 celebrations and 2028 Summer Olympics—stadium security professionals are working overtime to stay ahead of an increasingly complex threat landscape. The Security Industry Association (SIA) convened a timely Vertical Insights Stadium Security Symposium bringing together seasoned practitioners to unpack what it truly takes to keep venues, athletes and fans safe in this historic moment.

VIDEO: Vertical Insights Stadium Security Symposium

This event, presented by SIA with support from sponsor HID and in partnership with the National Center for Spectator Sports Safety and Security (NCS4), featured a panel moderated by SIA Manager of Industry Relations Courtney Kay and included four distinguished voices:

• Melissa Lesperance, MLD, CSSP, corporate security director at Ilitch Holdings (Little Caesars Arena, Comerica Park, Detroit Red Wings and Detroit Tigers)
• Bill Squires, 39-year sports facility security veteran and Columbia University instructor, currently serving as the chief venues and operations officer for the2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup New York New Jersey Host Committee
• Kristyn Kelly Shapiro, director of defense and security at Guidehouse and former senior Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) counterterrorism executive
• Phil Coppola, business development director, mobile solutions, PACS North America at HID, with 25 years in physical access and security technology

Here are some key takeaways and insights shared:

1. The Drone Threat Is Real—and Escalating

Melissa Lesperance opened with a striking real-world case study: during a Detroit Tigers home game at Comerica Park, drone detection systems flagged an unauthorized drone flying at speeds approaching 75 miles per hour—just 40 to 70 feet above players on the field. Within approximately 90 seconds, the multi-agency team embedded in the venue’s command center—including the FBI, Border Patrol and Detroit Police—located the operator on a nearby parking structure rooftop and took him into custody.

“Drones are consistently something that we are afraid of and really having to deal with in stadium security,” said Lesperance, who warned that the drone threat has evolved well beyond hobbyist nuisance: drones are increasingly being weaponized globally, and stadium operators must plan for scenarios involving chemical, biological or radiological payloads.

Lesperance also highlighted a new camera deployment mounted atop Detroit’s Fox Theater—capable of visually tracking drones in real time—as one example of how technology can help find “the needle in a haystack.”

2. Stretched Federal Resources Create a Security Gap

Kristyn Shapiro brought a sobering perspective from her experience in federal intelligence: with FIFA matches spread across multiple U.S. cities, America 250 celebrations, Route 66 centennial events and geopolitical crises diverting federal attention, the agencies that stadium operators have traditionally relied on for threat tipping and queuing are simply spread thin.

“A lot of that initial warning, [and] triage of information and what the threats could be, will now fall on you. So whereas before, because of these great partnerships that exist, tipping and queuing might have come from those federal partners. They [now] may not have the bandwidth to get there, which means that void will need to be filled by folks like you on the line,” Shapiro noted.

The implication for venue operators is direct: the burden of initial threat identification, triage and intelligence gathering is shifting onto stadium security teams and frontline partners.

Shapiro highlighted open-source intelligence (OSINT) tools —as essential capabilities for venues to proactively monitor online chatter, geofence their facilities for threat mentions and detect misinformation campaigns that could be used to deliberately overwhelm security checkpoints.

3. The Convergence of Cyber and Physical Security

Phil Coppola challenged attendees to think about access control infrastructure and how that will affect the security of stadiums. Most stadiums rely on physical credential cards that are rarely updated—yet those cards interface with networked systems that carry the same vulnerabilities as any IT or physical credential asset.

Phil explained, “In stadiums, we rely on a possession-based identification model. In other words, Phil is who he says he is because he has this piece of plastic, but Phil could have easily given this piece of plastic to somebody else.”

In addition, having a physical access card means that individuals can easily duplicate cards and “you will not even know that that happened if that’s a threat vector inside of some of your facilities,” said Coppola.

Coppola urged security teams to bring their IT departments into conversations about access control platforms, warning that outdated readers and panels can become network entry points for sophisticated attackers. His recommendation: migrate toward mobile credentials, which offer administrators real-time visibility into device status, app authentication enforcement and superior encryption.

Shapiro reinforced the cyber risk dimension, noting that hostile state actors have already demonstrated the ability to compromise water systems and critical infrastructure—scenarios that could play out inside a live stadium event with devastating effect.

4. Vehicle Ramming Attacks and Physical Perimeter Defense

Drawing on a recent near-miss incident on Easter Sunday, Lesperance described how spectator who had been kicked out of a game then stole a police car and attempted to ram Little Caesars Arena—only to be stopped cold by anti-ramming bollards.

“We have perfect video footage of him driving into those bollards at probably 30–40 miles an hour, and them completely stopping him,” she said. “There were no damages to the bollards.”

5. Multi-Agency Collaboration Is the Foundation of Resilience

Bill Squires, reflecting on nearly four decades in the industry and the complexity of coordinating 400-plus stakeholders for the FIFA World Cup in New York and New Jersey, described the scale of interagency coordination involved: MTA, Amtrak, NJ Transit, NYPD, New Jersey State Police, FBI, Secret Service, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and dozens more.

“The level of cooperation from so many different stakeholders is going to be incredible,” he said.

Key takeaways and advice from the panelists include:

• Train consistently, not occasionally. Lesperance was emphatic: Security drills must create muscle memory. “It has to be consistent training—it cannot be once a year,” she said.
• Involve IT in physical security decisions. Coppola’s advice was direct: “If your IT departments are not involved, you really should get them involved in your access control software.” The convergence of physical and cybersecurity for large-stakes events demands a unified approach.
• Bring every stakeholder to the table. As Shapiro put it, echoing the panel’s consensus: “Sept. 11, in many ways, was a failure of imagination. Really bringing all those people together from all the disparate perspectives—it is really looking at the problem and thinking about the most wild, outlandish thing you could think of.”
• Past performance is no guarantee of future success. Coppola offered a warning that resonated across the panel: “Just because it’s always worked in the past doesn’t mean it’s always going to work in the future. Involve as many stakeholders as you can, get as educated as you can, and have a forward-thinking mentality.”
• The legacy is the collaboration. Squires framed the coming years in terms of what they will teach the industry long after the final whistle:”The legacy we leave behind are all these stakeholders that have worked together—not only prepared for this event, executed the event, but lessons learned after the event for the future.”

Looking Ahead

With the FIFA World Cup kicking off in just weeks, followed by a packed calendar of high-profile events through 2028, the symposium made clear that no single organization—public or private—can go it alone. The security of mass gatherings depends on deep relationships, relentless training, technology that is both innovative and properly vetted and a willingness to imagine threats that haven’t happened yet.

SIA’s next Vertical Insights Symposium will focus on standards and guidance shaping K–12 school security on May 13, which will be followed by the Oil and Gas Security Symposium on June 10. Registration and event archives are available at on the SIA website.

Want even more on this topic? You can watch the full symposium here.

In creating this blog, content from the Vertical Insights Lodging and Casino Security Symposium was summarized using multiple large language models and reviewed by human editors.