World Cup 2026: White House defends barring Somali referee and Iranian officials

The White House has defended its decision to deny entry to a Somali referee and several Iranian officials participating in the 2026 World Cup, citing security concerns. Andrew Giuliani, who leads the White House team responsible for organizing the tournament, stated on Tuesday that these exclusions were based on "very good reasons."

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There have been officials who have been denied entry and for very good reasons.

The Somali referee, Omar Abdulkadir Artan, was turned away at the U.S. border on Saturday despite holding a valid visa. FIFA later announced he would not officiate in the competition. Similarly, about fifteen members of the Iranian team's support staff were denied U.S. visas.

Giuliani emphasized that "35 teams have been able to enter the United States so far," and "no player or coach has been denied access." He explained that the goal is to prevent "malicious actors from coming into the country under the guise of the World Cup," which is set to begin on Thursday. He alluded to potential issues with background checks for the referee, stating there were "background check issues."

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There was a referee who was not admitted. I cannot go into details but what I can tell you is that it was for a very good reason.

While the specific reasons for Artan's exclusion remain undisclosed, Giuliani suggested that some individuals claiming to be coaches might not be, and could potentially be "working directly with the Revolutionary Guards," Iran's ideological army. He did not provide further details on the Iranian officials' cases, only reiterating they were denied entry for "very good reasons."

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As you can imagine, there are people who claim to be coaches but may not be.