Somali referee Omar Artan says he was subjected to an 11-hour immigration interview before being denied entry to the United States for the World Cup despite holding the “right papers” and “right visa”.
Artan, who was set to be the first Somali to referee at a World Cup finals, was dropped from the list of officials on Monday after he was barred from entering the country at Miami International Airport.
No reason for Artan’s repatriation has been issued by US immigration authorities, but Somalia is one of several countries on a travel ban list introduced by President Donald Trump’s administration.
After speaking to the US authorities, the world governing body FIFA said Artan will miss the tournament.
“I am very, very disappointed,” Artan told the New York Times, external. “I’m just simply a referee who’s trying to live his dream – the biggest dream of my life, to come to the World Cup.”
A FIFA statement on the decision said: “FIFA can confirm that match official Omar Abdulkadir Artan will be unable to train and officiate at the FIFA World Cup 2026 after he was denied entry into the United States.
“Fifa is not involved in host country immigration processes, including visa adjudications, and has been informed by authorities that Mr Artan’s status will not be changed at present.”
A senior adviser to Somalia’s ministry of youth and sports confirmed the denial of entry to the BBC and said Artan had been travelling with valid documents.
A Somali embassy official in Nairobi told the BBC that Artan’s diplomatic passport had been issued specifically to ease his travel after earlier visa difficulties.
“I had the right papers and everything. I had the right visa,” said Artan.
Following the 11-hour immigration interview, Artan said he was then taken to a separate holding cell where he was detained for several hours before being put on a flight back to Istanbul, Turkey.
Speaking to BBC World Service, Andrew Giuliani, who leads the White House Task Force on the World Cup, said: “While I can’t go into the derog [derogatory information] on that, I can tell you it was the right decision by customs and border patrol, and I support that decision.”
It would not be possible for Artan to remain outside the United States and referee only matches played in Canada or Mexico.
Referees’ chief Pierluigi Collina has created a training hub for the tournament’s 52 referees and 88 assistant referees in Miami.
All on-pitch officials must stay at the base in Florida for training, preparation and security.
In December, Trump told reporters he does not want Somali immigrants in the US, and they should “go back to where they came from”.
“I think that they have a problem with my country,” Artan added.
The World Cup runs from 11 June to 19 July.
An official in the Somali National League, Artan became a FIFA referee in 2018 and has officiated at the Africa Cup of Nations.
Artan’s plight is the latest fiasco to hit the World Cup, with Iran’s football federation stating on Tuesday that their allocation of fan tickets for the group stage has been revoked.
Pundit and former England striker Ian Wright has labelled the tournament a “World Cup of chaos”, saying in a video on Instagram: “Every few hours, it’s another story about fans denied, player denied, officials denied, journalists denied, now refs.
“I’m laughing, but it’s not funny. It’s actually not funny, and something has to be said. The most expensive tickets ever, expensive accommodation, and transport through the roof.
“Is this how the hosts behave for the greatest game, the greatest tournament in the world? Are we not hearing more? Are we seeing how Qatar got dragged? Are we not hearing more? Is this the spirit of football, really?
“I feel for the American fans who are desperate for this – how embarrassing for them this must be.
“This is a World Cup of chaos.”
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