Somali referee 'positive' despite heartbreak over historic World Cup assignment

The Somali referee who has been denied entry into the United States ahead of the World Cup has spoken out about his ordeal.

Omar Abdulkadir Artan, the 34-year-old who was named 2025 Male Referee of the Year by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), landed in Miami on a flight from Istanbul on Saturday, but was refused entrance into the country by U.S. Customs and Border Patrol.

He would have been the first-ever Somali referee to take charge of a match at the World Cup.

"Despite the circumstances, I am in a positive mood and I am focused on the next challenges in my refereeing career," Artan said in a statement, according to the Miami Herald.

"I would like to thank FIFA and CAF for all their support and I promise to keep (more) 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."

Artan had previously officiated in two African Cup of Nations.

A year ago, Artan took charge of his first major continental final, Leg 2 of the 2025 CAF Champions League final between Egypt's Pyramids FC and South Africa's Mamelodi Sundowns in Cairo on June 1.

His denial to enter the U.S. comes despite insistence from FIFA, in the buildup to the World Cup, that athletes and approved match officials would not be affected by increased immigration scrutiny from the United States government.

The current administration is enforcing a full or partial immigration ban from 39 countries. Somalia is among the nations where all immigrant and non- immigrant visas have been suspended.

Of 104 total matches at the 2026 World Cup, 78 will be played in the United States.

FIFA did not immediately respond to a request to clarify why Artan could not officiate one of the 26 matches being played in Mexico or Canada.

"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 FIFA spokesperson said in a statement.

"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."

FIFA announced some early tournament referee assignments with veteran UEFA Champions League official Danny Makkelie to take charge of the United States' opener against Paraguay in Inglewood, Calif., on Friday night.

Born in Curacao, the Dutch citizen was the referee of two group stage matches at the 2022 World Cup.

In Europe, he took charge of the 2020 UEFA Europa League final between Sevilla and Inter Milan, as well as Leg 1 of this year's UEFA Champions League semifinal between Atletico Madrid and Arsenal.

Meanwhile, Brazilian official Wilton Pereira Sampaio will be in the middle for the tournament opener between Mexico and South Africa on Thursday afternoon in Mexico City.

The 44-year-old will be making his second World Cup finals appearance after taking charge of four matches in Qatar in 2022.

His biggest assignment came in the quarterfinals, where he officiated France's 2-1 victory over England.

--Ian Quillen, Field Level Media