The White House, U.S. Customs and Border Protection have disclosed that Somali referee Omar Artan was denied entry into the United States prior to the 2026 World Cup due to security vetting concerns.
Recall that Artan arrived at Miami International Airport with a valid U.S. visa, however, following an extensive inspection, the Department of Homeland Security stated that he was inadmissible due to vetting concerns and sent him back to Turkey.
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Alongside the Somali referee, the White House also blocked certain Iranian support staff from entering the country. The White House Task Force observed a direct connection between some individuals claiming to be coaches and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Andrew Giuliani, the executive director of the White House Task Force on the World Cup, defended the denial as being for a very good reason, though particulars were not publicly released.
“To this point we’ve had 35 teams that have come into the United States,” Andrew Giuliani, the executive director of the task force told AFP at an event hosted by the Atlantic Council in Washington.
“No players, no coaches have been denied. There have been some officials that have been denied, and for good reason.”
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“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.
“While I can’t go into the details, what I can tell you, high level, is it was for a very good reason,” Giuliani said of Artan, who was turned back at Miami airport.
The White House envoy also said there were currently no credible threats to the tournament but the intelligence community is tripled down and will continue to monitor the situation between now and whenever the final goal is scored on July 19.
