JamzNG Latest News, Gist, Entertainment in Nigeria
FIFA President Gianni Infantino reacts to Somali referee Omar Artan’s recent refusal to enter the United States for the 2026 World Cup.
Earlier this week, Artan was not allowed to enter the US despite being named Africa’s best referee of 2025 at the CAF awards.
It is worth recalling that President Donald Trump imposed a travel ban on Somalia and countries such as Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Myanmar (Burma), Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Laos, Libya, Mali, Niger, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Yemen and individuals with the Palestinian Authority in January.
Artan is an official referee in the Somali first division league and is also a FIFA registered referee member.
But its failure to qualify for the World Cup hosting nation has raised many concerns, compounded by the current problems facing Iran’s national team and fans.
Also Read: Okoye shone as the Super Eagles drew in a friendly against Poland
Speaking at the Conference on Wednesday evening, Infantino, who narrowed his speech down to three main talking points – visas, tickets and Iran – said the situation was unfortunate.
“It’s very unfortunate what happened to this referee from Somalia. Once again, we can’t control everything. We’ll try, we’ll discuss, we’ll talk, we’ll see,” he said.
“Sometimes it’s good to relax, relax, we work on everything, we try to get everything done. Sometimes to immediately start screaming and shouting has the opposite effect of finding a solution.
“Believe me when I tell you, we are always trying to find solutions. But we need to respect that we are not kings of the world who can rule over governments and police forces. We are a sports organization.”
There was also displeasure in some quarters regarding ticket prices ahead of the World Cup, and Infantino addressed this during the conference.
He said: “Let me just say that our entry price, which is 60 dollars, is the lowest entry price of any American sport in the play-off phase, our average price of under 500 dollars is again the lowest average of the American sports average.”
Regarding Iran, he said: “I’m very happy we managed to get Iran to come and play. I’m proud of my team’s work.”
The 2026 FIFA World Cup will finally kick off tomorrow (Thursday) with the opening match between Mexico and South Africa.
