World Cup referee denied entry to the United States days before tournament opener

World Cup referee Omar Artan has been denied entry into the United States despite being included on FIFA's list of officials for the tournament.

The 2026 World Cup gets underway on Thursday in Mexico City, with co-hosts Mexico taking on South Africa.

The tournament will also be hosted by Canada and the United States.

The US have been involved in several controversies relating to visas heading into the tournament, mainly related to theirs and Israel's conflict with Iran.

Iranian players and key staff have been allowed to enter the country - though their training base has been moved from the US to Mexico - but several executives have been denied entry.

Now, Somali official Artan has reportedly been stopped from entering the US.

Referee denied entry to US

According to journalist Romain Molina, Artan had been supported by the Somali embassy in Nairobi, Kenya, to obtain a diplomatic passport prior to travelling to the US.

Artan published a post on his Facebook page last Friday in which he thanked the embassy for their support.

However, when he arrived in the States, he was said to have been 'immediately sent back' by immigration authorities, and he is currently residing in Turkey until the situation is resolved.

BBC report that Artan was stopped from entering the US at Miami International Airport.

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.

SPORTbible have contacted FIFA for comment.

Artan officiated one match at the 2026 Africa Cup of Nations - Ivory Coast's 3-2 group stage win over Gabon.

In doing so, the 31-year-old became the first referee from Somalia to officiate at AFCON, and then became the first official from the country to be selected for a World Cup.

FIFA do not typically release referee appointments ahead of time, meaning it is unclear as to which group matches Artan is scheduled to officiate.

Artan is one of 52 referees including on FIFA's list of officials for this summer's tournament. Five other African officials are on the referee list.

He has been officiating in Somalia's top division since 2018 and was included in CAF's official list in 2020.

He officiated the second leg of last season's African Champions League final, and he was voted as CAF's best referee for 2025.

Somali news outlet Hiiraan describes Artan as 'renowned for his sharp decision-making and commanding presence on the field', and note that he has 'garnered recognition as one of Africa's most promising young referees'.