White House World Cup chief defends visa ban for Somali referee, Iranians

WASHINGTON: The head of the White House Task Force for the World Cup on Tuesday (Jun 9) defended the decision not to grant visas to a Somali referee and some support staff for the Iranian team.

"To this point we've had 35 teams that have come into the United States," Andrew Giuliani, the executive director of the task force, said at an event hosted by the Atlantic Council in Washington.

"No players, no coaches have been denied. There have been some officials that have been denied, and for good reason."

A US State Department official told AFP on Tuesday night that the referee was "associated with suspected members of terrorist organisations," therefore "making the traveler ineligible for admission to the United States".

Giuliani, the son of former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, was asked specifically about the decision to bar Somali referee Omar Artan 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 added.

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's airport.

Somalia is one of several countries on a travel ban list introduced by President Donald Trump's administration as part of a broader immigration crackdown.

Iran, who will play their three group games on American soil, were forced to switch their training base to Mexico due to the ongoing military conflict with the US.

The Iranian football federation said on Tuesday that its allocation of tickets for supporters had been revoked and some team support staff were denied visas.

Giulia