The World Cup starts in a few days, but one of the referees has just been told he will not be allowed to enter the United States.
Omar Abdulkadir Altan was denied entry to the United States (Image: Photo by Khaled DESOUKI / AFP via Getty Images)
FIFA World Cup referee Omar Artan has been denied entry to the United States. Artan, who is from Somalia, was selected as one of the African referee representatives for the tournament.
He was selected by the African Football Confederation as one of the representatives of the continent and officiated at many matches of the African Cup of Nations. In December, Somalia was one of 12 countries designated as “high risk” by the U.S. government, which imposed travel restrictions and entry restrictions on individuals from these countries.
Although it was difficult to obtain a visa for the tournament, it was thought that he would be allowed to enter the United States for the tournament.
According to reports, the Somali embassy in Nairobi, Kenya, assisted him and managed to issue him a diplomatic passport to enter the United States. When this happened, FIFA announced that the official’s visa issue had been “fully resolved” and that he was “able to serve as a referee at the FIFA World Cup.”
It is now known that he traveled from Nairobi to Turkey and then to Miami, but was refused entry to the United States and returned to Istanbul.
When asked for comment by Mirror Football, a spokesperson said: “FIFA can confirm that match official Omar Abdulkadir Altan has been refused entry to the United States and will therefore be unable to train and manage the 2026 FIFA World Cup.”
“FIFA is not involved in the host country’s entry procedures, including visa checks, and the authorities have informed us that Mr. Artan’s status will not change at this time. As with previous FIFA events, the host country’s government will ultimately decide who receives a visa and who is allowed entry into their country.”
Artan was selected as one of eight CAF referees to officiate at the World Cup (Image: Ulrik Pedersen/NurPhoto)
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Artan later released a statement saying: “Despite the circumstances, I am feeling positive and focused on the next challenge in my refereeing career.
“We would like to thank FIFA and CAF for all their support and are committed to continuing to raise the level of refereeing while focusing on the future.
“I would like to thank my football family for their messages and wish my colleagues all the best at the World Cup. I look forward to joining them again in future competitions.”
Artan was one of eight judges selected by CAF to officiate the competition. In addition, eight members are from the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), one from the Oceania Football Confederation, 12 from Conmebol, and 15 from UEFA.
However, assuming FIFA is unable to persuade the US government to change its mind, it is currently unclear who will replace Artan. This may prove difficult given President Donald Trump’s hostility toward Somalia.
Since being re-elected as US president, President Trump has claimed that there are armed groups belonging to the so-called Islamic State in Africa and has ordered airstrikes against the country. It has also targeted Somali communities in the United States, particularly in Minnesota.
At the time, when ICE was operating in the state, President Trump told the media that Somalis living in the United States should “go back to where they came from” and that “their country is not good for a reason.”
He added, “I don’t want them in our country. I’ll be honest with you, OK. Somebody’s going to say, ‘Oh, that’s not politically correct.'” I don’t care. We don’t want them in our country.
“Somalia is hardly a country; they have nothing. They have nothing. They just run around killing each other. There is no structure.”
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