MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — A Somali soccer referee who was due to become the first from his country to officiate the World Cup but was denied entry to the United States was named Africa’s best referee and is considered a hero to many in his country.
Omar Artan, 34, was due to be the first referee from Somalia to officiate a World Cup after making FIFA’s final list for the tournament, bringing years of experience and hard work to soccer's biggest stage.
Artan’s anticipated feat brought hope to many in the country of about 19 million people, which is on the path of recovery after decades of instability and civil war.
The refusal to allow entry by Artan, who was scheduled to join other World Cup referees at their training base in Miami, was an unprecedented move in modern soccer history by a host country. The U.S. is co-hosting the tournament with Mexico and Canada.
After being dropped from FIFA's list of World Cup referees, Artan returned to a hero's welcome in Somalia's capital Mogadishu on Wednesday and urged young people to remain proud of their country.
Here is what to know about Artan:
Artan was enlisted as a FIFA referee in 2018. He later became the first Somali to officiate at the African Cup of Nations when he officiated the group fixture between Tunisia and Namibia in January 2024.
In May, he was the referee for the decisive leg of the African Champions League final in Morocco, the continent’s biggest club soccer game.
He is one of Africa’s top referees and was named the continent’s best male referee in 2025.
FIFA selects World Cup referees through a lengthy evaluation process overseen by the organization's refereeing officials. The candidates are typically monitored for several years in international, continental and top domestic competitions.
Referees first must be proposed by their national soccer associations to get on the FIFA international list and begin officiating continental tournaments such as the African Cup of Nations. They are then picked for FIFA-organized games like World Cup qualifying matches, a youth World Cup or Olympics. Artan worked at the men’s Under-20 World Cup last year in Chile.
Those judged to be the best referees were invited to World Cup preparation camps in 2025 and earlier this year. The final list of referees was announced in April.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection said Artan “was determined to be inadmissible due to vetting concerns and was denied entry.”
A U.S. official later said the referee was refused admission due to “association with suspected members of terror organizations.” The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a matter covered by visa privacy laws.
Somalia is one of nearly 40 countries whose citizens are banned from entry under the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration and Somali officials say they believe Artan might have been denied due to those restrictions.
U.S. President Donald Trump has made statements targeting Somali immigrants in the U.S. and asked them to leave.
FIFA said it was not involved in the immigration processes and that, in line with previous FIFA events, a host government “ultimately determines who receives a visa and who is admitted into their country.”
Still, the decision by a World Cup host country to block the entry of a FIFA-appointed match official is unprecedented.
On social media, fans expressed anger over the Artan decision and similar rulings by immigration officials that have affected preparations by visiting teams. Online comments have questioned the ability of the U.S. to host the global competition.
Somalia’s soccer culture has endured through more than three decades of civil war and political instability.
Soccer remains one of Somalia’s most popular sports and has made notable progress in recent years despite limited resources. The national team has increased its participation in regional and international competitions. Local leagues have operated during some of the country’s most difficult periods, often serving as a source of unity and hope for young people.
The Somali Football Federation says it organizes 22 competitions annually, from youth and regional leagues to the Somali Premier League, which is the top domestic tier featuring 12 clubs. Domestic competitions continued in various forms even as stadiums suffered damages while being occupied by armed groups or used as military bases.
The restoration of Mogadishu Stadium, which holds about 65,000 spectators, and the return of large crowds to league matches have become symbols of gradual recovery and the unifying role soccer continues to play in Somali society.
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Musambi reported from Nairobi, Kenya. Associated Press writer Chinedu Asadu in Abuja, Nigeria, and Graham Dunbar in Geneva contributed.
