Stadiums and other locations that host large scale events may not be secure from drones.
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Fifty years ago, American author Thomas Harris released his novel Black Sunday, which featured a plot by terrorists to commit mass murder during the Super Bowl in New Orleans by blowing up a bomb in the “Aldrich Blimp.” The book was subsequently adapted into the 1977 film of the same name, which, surprisingly, Goodyear allowed to use its actual blimps.
The book was written following the very real terrorist attack on the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich. Yet, the terrorist attacks that took place at the Bataclan concert hall in Paris 10 years ago this week, and then two years later outside an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, England, serve as reminders that large gatherings present a large bullseye.
The Threat Has Evolved
Today, if such a movie were to be made about an airborne attack on the Super Bowl, it likely would be about terrorists using a drone swarm.
Unfortunately, the threat is unlikely to be limited to Hollywood’s imagination. Where hijacking the Goodyear or Aldrich Blimp would have been no small feat, just this week, Senate Intelligence Committee chairman Tom Cotton, R-Ark., warned in an interview with CBS News that drones are now threatening military sites and large civilian gatherings.
The same report noted that the NFL has seen a nearly doubling of drone incursions, from 1,300 to 2,300, between 2021 and 2024. The issue needs to be front and center as the United States annually hosts high-profile events like the Super Bowl, but next June will host the World Cup, one of the most significant sporting events in the world. That will be followed by the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 2028.
In the latter case, the events won’t be limited to stadiums, but will take place throughout the City of Angels. Experts warn that providing protection is something we should have been considering for years, and now we’re playing catch-up.
Bob Blumenscheid, senior product marketing manager at industrial Internet of Things provider Digi International, explained in an email that drone security needs to be part of a broader connected-device ecosystem.
“At events of that scale, drones are used for everything from crowd monitoring and broadcasting to logistics and emergency response. Each drone, and even its controller, is a connected computer – meaning it can be hacked, spoofed, or hijacked if not properly secured,” said Blumenscheid
“In multi-venue events like the Olympics, the complexity increases, but the principle is the same: every drone must prove it’s legitimate, running trusted software, and communicating through verified channels,” Blumenscheid added.
A Threat Vector Years In The Making
Commercial off-the-shelf drones hit the market in 2010, and with each passing year, capabilities have increased, prices have come down, and yet, legislation has played catch-up. At the same time, insufficient attention has been given to providing law enforcement agencies with the necessary tools to counter unauthorized drones.
“There is an ongoing need for expanded authorities to give trained state and local officials the ability to engage in the kind of active detection and mitigation measures that would protect fans at a broader array of sporting events,” said Jennifer Daskal, a cybersecurity and national security attorney at Venable LLP.
In an email, she explained that pending legislation in the House would create a special program for state and local law enforcement agencies responsible for securing the 2026 FIFA World Cup and 2028 Olympics to deploy and operate approved counter-UAS mitigation systems.
“This would be an important expansion of authorities,” said Daskal, who acknowledged that detection is still key to ensuring the safety of attendees at large-scale events. “We need to do more to understand the airspace and to identify and respond to anomalies as a result. Enforcement is also important – particularly with respect to risks posed by negligent or careless drone use. These are actors that can be deterred.”
There is a need for engagement across the multiple locations where events are being held to ensure all relevant players are aware of and prepared to respond to the full array of security threats.
“We highly encourage exercises that bring together state, local, and federal officials with stadium owners and operators to work through crisis management planning – and can help with those,” Daskal continued.
Warning Signs Ignored
Even as last year saw a wave of drone sightings over New Jersey and other locations that put the issue in the spotlight, it has been a problem that has been ignored.
“The warning signs have been clear for years: drones have become cheap, weaponizable, and scalable faster than traditional defense systems can adapt,” said Jean-Marc Pizano, CEO of ATREYD, which now produces anti-drone systems now being used in Ukraine.
Pizano explained in an email that the conflicts from Ukraine to the Middle East have proven that small autonomous systems can bypass legacy air defenses with devastating efficiency.
“Jamming does not work anymore, and we should not live in an illusion where an event going well, like the Paris Olympics, means that we can manage this threat with yesterday’s technology,” Pizano added. “You have now fiber optic drones which cannot be jammed, swarms, and even the worst trained people who joined the conflict to learn. The technology is cheap and devastating, causing 70% of human losses on the battlefield.”
That doesn’t mean it is too late. Pizano suggested that efforts need to begin as soon as possible. “The technology exists today, but delaying deployment leaves major events—including the World Cup and the Olympics exposed to low-cost, high-impact attacks.”
Moreover, drones are just part of the problem. Just as airports learned to scan for a multitude of threats, so too must arenas and other events that attract large crowds.
“The right response is to treat drones like any other connected endpoint: secure from the moment they’re built, not after deployment,” said Blumenscheid. “A venue or event should have a comprehensive drone security program in place to protect itself from drone risk.”
In other words, drones are one threat, but in the modern era, they shouldn’t be seen as the only threat. Security should employ a layered approach.
“It also means protecting the ground control systems — tablets, phones, and networks – which can often be the weakest link,” Blumenscheid added. “The more we embed strong security foundations into every layer, the less likely it is that drones become the next unexpected threat vector at major public events.”