Photo: KENZO TRIBOUILLARD / AFP / Getty Images
Omar Artan — one of Africa's most respected referees and the only Somali selected to officiate at the 2026 FIFA World Cup — was denied entry into the United States on Saturday (June 6) after arriving at Miami International Airport on a flight from Istanbul.
He would have been the first Somali referee ever to officiate at a World Cup. That historic moment is now gone.
Somalia is one of 39 nations subject to the Trump administration's travel ban. U.S. Customs and Border Protection confirmed Artan's denial in a statement, saying he was "determined to be inadmissible due to vetting concerns" following what they described as a routine inspection. No further details were provided.
Artan had a valid U.S. visa at the time of his arrival, according to a senior official in Somalia's Ministry of Youth and Sports, per France24. FIFA confirmed Monday (June 8) that Artan would not be able to train or officiate at the tournament, and made clear it had no authority to intervene. "In line with previous FIFA events, a host government ultimately determines who receives a visa and who is admitted into their country," the governing body said in a statement, per ESPN.
Artan responded with remarkable grace. "Despite the circumstances, I am in a positive mood and I am focused on the next challenges in my refereeing career," he said in a statement released through FIFA. "I want to thank the football family for their messages and wish my colleagues all the best success during the World Cup."
The Council on American-Islamic Relations condemned the decision. "Our nation should not ban anyone from our shores simply because of their race or their ethnicity," CAIR Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell said. "Once someone has gone through that thorough vetting process, there is no reason to ban them from our country simply because of their nationality. Doing so is an affront to our values and the law."
Artan's case is not an isolated one. Iran's national soccer team also faced visa delays ahead of the tournament, receiving permission to enter the country just one day before their opening match.
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