Omar Abdulkadir Artan, the Somali referee who was banned from entering the United States to officiate World Cup matches, will receive the full tournament fee from FIFA, a Reuters report shows.
Artan arrived in Miami on June 6 on a flight from Istanbul, where he was denied entry into the country by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
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“During processing, the traveler underwent an additional inspection, a routine part of CBP’s inspection process that requires agents to verify information or determine admissibility,” CBP said in its statement. “After inspection, the traveler, a FIFA World Cup referee, was determined to be inadmissible due to control issues and was denied entry.”
Artan, 34, was awarded the 2025 Referee of the Year award by the Confederation of African Football.
He had previously participated in two African Cup of Nations. A year ago, he 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.
In the wake of his denial in the United States, UEFA, Europe’s football governing body, selected him to referee the UEFA Super Cup match between Aston Villa and Paris Saint-Germain on August 12 in Salzburg, Austria.
Published on June 15, 2026
