A visa denial that stopped a decorated Somali referee at a US airport has drawn fresh attention to how the White House says it is policing access to the World Cup as teams arrive for the tournament.
Andrew Giuliani, executive director of the White House Task Force for the World Cup, defended the decision not to admit the official and said similar scrutiny has been applied to some members of Iran’s delegation.
“To this point we’ve had 35 teams that have come into the United States,” Mr Giuliani said at an event hosted by the Atlantic Council in Washington.
“No players, no coaches have been denied,” Mr Giuliani said. “There have been some officials that have been denied, and for good reason.”
A US State Department official said last night that the referee was “associated with suspected members of terrorist organisations,” therefore “making the traveler ineligible for admission to the United States”.
Andrew GiulianI (L) with FIFA President Gianni Infantino in New York last weekend
Mr Giuliani, the son of former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, was pressed specifically on the case of Somali referee Omar Artan, who was barred from entering the country.
“We’re striking that balance between making sure that any bad actors that…try to come into the country under the guise of the World Cup will not get access to the United States,” he said.
Mr Artan, who in 2025 was named men’s referee of the year by the Confederation of African Football, would have been the first Somali to referee at a World Cup.
He was turned back at Miami airport.
Watch: Somali referee denied US entry returns home, thanks FIFA for support
Somalia is among the countries covered by a travel ban introduced under President Donald Trump’s administration, part of a wider immigration crackdown.
Iran, set to play their three group games on American soil, have shifted their training base to Mexico because of the ongoing military conflict with the United States.
The Iranian football federation said its allocation of tickets for supporters had been revoked and that some team support staff were refused visas.
Mr Giuliani said “all the Iranian coaching staff is coming in” but added there are “some Iranian officials that are not coming in – again for very good reason”.
Members of the Iranian team arrive at the team hotel in Tijuana, Mexico
He said he “can’t get into the particulars” but suggested some individuals may have misrepresented their roles, saying “there are some people that claim that they are coaches that may not be coaches”.
Mr Giuliani said Mr Trump is seeking a “level playing field” for every team at the World Cup, while also ensuring “that people that are directly working, let’s say, with the IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps) have no ability to access the United States of America”.
The envoy said there were currently “no credible threats” to the tournament, but added the intelligence community has “tripled down” and will keep watch “between now and whenever the final goal is scored on July 19.”
