Somali referee Omar Artan was interrogated for 11 hours by US immigration authorities at Miami International Airport on Monday before being told he would not be allowed into the country – his diplomatic passport and single entry US visa rejected. A US government official said Artan had been denied entry because of an alleged “association with suspected members of terror organisations”. Questioned specifically about his links to Somali militant group Al Shabab, Artan insisted he knew nothing about the organisation. “I had the right papers and everything. I had the right visa,” he said. “I’m just simply a referee who’s trying to live his dream, the biggest dream of my life, to come to the World Cup.”
After being put back on a plane to Turkey, Artan received assistance from Fifa officials in Istanbul before boarding a flight to the Somali capital Mogadishu. Sources told BBC Sport that even though Artan will take no part in the World Cup, Fifa has committed to paying his salary in full. Referees do not know the actual fee they will receive for officiating at the World Cup, which is paid after the tournament is over.
“Somali referee Omar Artan denied US entry for World Cup will still receive full tournament fee from Fifa.”
Artan, the 2025 Confederation of African Football (Caf) men’s referee of the year, has since been invited to officiate the Uefa Super Cup between Paris St-Germain and Aston Villa in Salzburg, Austria on 12 August. The 34-year-old, who thanked “my people and my country” after being welcomed in his homeland, has vowed to officiate at the 2030 World Cup. He had a year to remember in 2025, becoming the first Somali to take charge of a continental final – the second leg of Pyramids FC’s African Champions League final victory over Mamelodi Sundowns in June 2025. Fifa also appointed Artan to the U-20 World Cup in Chile, where he took charge of three matches including the third-place play-off. At the end of the year he refereed two group games at the Africa Cup of Nations, having also officiated at the tournament in 2024.