Ian Wright issues passionate response after Somalian referee denied entry to US for World Cup

Ian Wright has described the upcoming World Cup as "chaos" after referee Omar Artan was denied entry into the United States, despite being included on FIFA's list of officials for the tournament.

Artan was set to become the first Somali to referee at the World Cup after being selected as one of the continent's representatives by the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

The 34-year-old travelled on a diplomatic passport issued by the Somalia Embassy but after a “routine” inspection at Miami International Airport, he was turned away by US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) due to “vetting concerns".

When asked about Artan’s case, a US Customs and Border Protection spokesperson said that the referee underwent additional inspection upon arriving in Miami.

“During processing, the traveller underwent additional inspection, a routine part of CBP’s inspection process when officers need to verify information or determine admissibility,” the spokesperson told CNN.

“Following inspection, the traveller, a referee for the FIFA World Cup, was determined to be inadmissible due to vetting concerns and was denied entry.”

In a statement to SPORTbible, FIFA confirmed that Artan will miss this summer's tournament.

Somalia is one of the countries on US President Donald Trump's travel ban list, but no specific reason has yet been given for Artan's repatriation.

"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," a spokesperson from FIFA said.

"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.

"In line with previous FIFA events, a host government ultimately determines who receives a visa and who is admitted into their country."

Ian Wright criticises "World Cup of chaos" in passionate response to Artan news

Wright, who will be on punditry duty for ITV at this summer's World Cup, took to Instagram to post a video in which he spoke about the "chaos" leading up to this summer's tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

"I've just read that the Somalian referee has been denied entry," he began. "Every few hours it's another story, another story about fans denied, players denied, officials denied, journalists denied, now refs," said Wright.

"You know something: I'm laughing but it's not funny, it's actually not funny and something has to be said.

"The expensive tickets, the most expensive tickets ever, expensive accommodation, transport through the roof. It has to be said. Is this how the hosts behave really for the greatest game, the greatest tournament in the world, is this how the hosts behave?

"Are we not hearing more? Are we seeing how Qatar got dragged, are we not hearing more? Is this the spirit of football, really?

"You know who I feel for? I feel for the American fans who are desperate for this, American soccer fans who are desperate for this, how embarrassed they must be. How embarrassing for them this must be."

🗣️ Ian Wright has his say on the Somalian referee situation. 🇸🇴 pic.twitter.com/XGQrLVQEEN

— World Cup HQ (@WorldCup26HQ) June 9, 2026

"This is the World Cup, this is a World Cup of chaos. Whoever wins this World Cup is going to have to go through some serious chaos to get this done," he added. "I hope we can do it, but something has to be said now. This is the World Cup."