Somalian referee Omar Artan has thanked the football family for its support after being denied a visa to the United States, where he was due to officiate in the 2026 World Cup.Artan was on FIFAs 52-strong list of officials to take charge of the tournament that begins on Thursday but is now in Turkey after being turned away at border control at Miami International Airport.No reason was given by US immigration and it is believed Artan was travelling on a diplomatic passport to ease any entry issues. Somalia is, however, on a travel ban list introduced by US president Donald Trump, who late last year was awarded the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize.I would like to thank FIFA and CAF for all their support and I promise to keep my refereeing levels up as I concentrate on the future, Artan told Reuters.I want to thank the football family for their messages and wish my colleagues all the best success during the World Cup and I look forward to joining them again in future competitions.Table of ContentsFIFA claim their blameless after Artan turned awayInfantino pledges go out of the window following Artan decisionFIFA claim their blameless after Artan turned awayFIFA confirmed the decision was out of their hands and would not be overturned.FIFA can confirm that match official Omar Abdulkadir Artan will be unable to train and officiate at the World Cup 2026 after he was denied entry into the United States, read a statement.FIFA is not involved in host country immigration processes, including visa adjudications, and has been informed by authorities that Mr Artans status will not be changed at present.In line with previous FIFA events, a host government ultimately determines who receives a visa and who is admitted into their country.There have been other issues with entry to the US with reports Iraq striker Aymen Hussein was detained for questioning for seven hours in Chicago and the team photographer barred altogether.Infantino pledges go out of the window following Artan decisionFIFAs stance on Artan is in direct opposition to the pledges made by president Gianni Infantino when discussing the bidding process for the tournament in 2017.Then, he said: Teams who qualify for a World Cup need to have access to the country, otherwise there is no World Cup. That is obvious.We are now in the process of defining the bid requirements. In the world there are many countries who have bans, travel bans, visa requirements and so on and so forth. Its obvious when it comes to FIFA competitions, any team, including the supporters and officials of that team, who qualify for a World Cup need to have access to the country, otherwise there is no World Cup.The requirements will be clear. And then each country can make up their decision, whether they want to bid or not based on the requirements. Topics Omar Artan Add us as a preferred source on Google If you enjoy reading this article, you can help support our independent football journalism by adding 101 Great Goals as a preferred source You Should Also Read World Cup Preview: Ignore Infantino and focus on Messi, Yamal, Mbappe and the sheer joy of the Greatest Show on Earth Jon Fisher 9th June, 2026 The 10 Players for Whom the World Cup Provides a Pathway to Premier League Riches Mitch Fretton 9th June, 2026 NBA Finals: Wembanyama regains mojo to deny Knicks and watching Trump as Spurs hit back Jon Fisher 9th June, 2026 Brazil provide Neymar progress update following scan Nicholas McGee 8th June, 2026 France 3-1 Northern Ireland: Report, result and goals as Olise scores hat-trick Nicholas McGee 8th June, 2026 Netherlands 2-1 Uzbekistan: Report, result and goals as Oranje win marred by injury Nicholas McGee 8th June, 2026
