Somali referee Omar Abdulkadir Artan has reportedly been denied entry into the United States despite being selected to officiate at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Artan is said to have been stopped by immigration officials upon arrival at Miami International Airport and was subsequently returned to Istanbul yesterday.

The news was broken by Romain Molina, who has reported for The Guardian, The New York Times, and the BBC, in his X account this way: “Appointed by FIFA to officiate at the World Cup, Somali referee Omar Artan was denied entry to the United States.

“Given his difficulties in obtaining a visa, he received support from the Somali embassy in Nairobi, which provided him with a diplomatic passport.’’

“This was insufficient for the American authorities, who immediately sent him back… As a reminder, Artan officiated last year’s Champions League final second leg between Pyramids FC and Mamelodi Sundowns and was named CAF’s African Referee of the Year for 2025.”

The development comes just days before the start of the World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico, where Artan had been appointed as one of Africa’s representatives among the tournament’s match officials.

The Somali Embassy in Nairobi confirmed on Friday that it had facilitated the referee’s travel using a diplomatic passport.

Artan is regarded as one of Africa’s leading referees and was recently named Africa’s Best Referee for 2025 at the CAF Awards in Rabat, Morocco.

The incident is likely to raise questions given his official role at FIFA’s flagship tournament. Somalia is among the countries affected by U.S. travel restrictions, with most Somali nationals facing limitations on certain visa categories, although exemptions may apply for diplomats and individuals deemed to be travelling in the U.S. national interest.

Neither FIFA nor the Somali Football Federation had publicly commented on the matter at the time of writing.
Artan’s status for the tournament remains unclear, with the World Cup set to kick off this week across North America.