White House chief defends ban on World Cup referee entering US in new statement

The United States denied entry to officials for ‘good reason’ ahead of the World Cup, says a White House official.

It comes after Somali referee Omar Abdulkadir Artan was barred from entering the country for the tournament.

Getty

The African referee of the year was denied entry into the USA after landing in Miami.

Artan had been set to become the first Somali to officiate at a World Cup this summer.

Andrew Giuliani, the executive director of the White House Task Force on the World Cup has now defended his administration’s decision.

Speaking at an event in Washington days away from the opener, he explained: “To this point we’ve had 35 teams that have come into the United States. No players, no coaches have been denied.

“There have been some officials that have been denied, and for good reason.”

Why was Artan denied entry?

Giuliani was also specifically asked about Artan being turned away at the border.

The 34-year-old had arrived in Miami with a diplomatic passport and a single-entry US visa for the tournament.

Responding to the question, Giuliani added: “We’re striking that balance between making sure that any bad actors that try to come into the country under the guise of the World Cup will not get access to the United States.”

Fox News posted a statement purported to be from an official from the Trump administration that claimed Artan had ‘association with suspected members of terror organisations’.

Though no proof has been provided about what those suspected links are.

Getty

It read: “This individual was seeking admission to the United States. Upon further inspection by CBP, derogatory information, including association with suspected members of terror organisations, was discovered making the traveller ineligible for admission to the United States under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).

“The traveller was refused admission and given immigration forms that provide the section of law used to complete an expedited removal under 8235 of the INA. President Trump’s administration will not allow any security threat to enter our country – full stop.”

Artan previously officiated two matches at this year’s Africa Cup of Nations.

He had been one of seven referees selected for the World Cup from Africa.

What did Omar Artan say?

Speaking in a statement to Reuters, Artan said: “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.

“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.”

AFP

After arriving back in Somalia, Artan vowed to go to the next World Cup.

“I promise you, God willing, that I will attend the next one,” he said as hundreds of supporters at the airport waved the Somali flag.

“I want the Somali public to take comfort in this and remain confident.”

Iranian staff denied visas

His denied entry comes after Iran were forced to move their base for the tournament to Mexico amid the ongoing conflict with the USA.

All three of Iran’s group stage fixtures are scheduled to be played in the US, though, with matches in Los Angeles and Seattle.

The Iranian Football Federation have also claimed that their ticket allocation for supporters has been revoked.

Meanwhile, some members of their team support staff were denied visas to enter the USA for their matches.

Iran begin their campaign against New Zealand at SoFi Stadium on Monday.

If they finish in the top two in group G, their last 32 match will also be played in the USA.

The 2026 World Cup begins on Thursday with Mexico facing South Africa in Mexico City at 8pm BST, live on talkSPORT.

Co-hosts USA play their first match at 2am BST on Saturday as they take on Paraguay in California.