Somali referee Omar Abdulkadir Artan, who was denied entry into the US to officiate in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, returned Tuesday to his home country from Istanbul.

Artan said the "biggest dream of my life" had been ripped away after he was turned back at the US border.

"I am very, very disappointed," Artan told The New York Times from Istanbul, where he returned after being refused entry in Miami.

"I'm just simply a referee who's trying to live his dream, the biggest dream of my life, to come to the World Cup."

Artan said he was subjected to an 11-hour interview with border officials at Miami International Airport and then taken to a holding cell where he was detained for several further hours before being put on a flight back to Türkiye.

"I had the right papers and everything. I had the right visa," he said.

Referee of the year

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 denied entry over “vetting concerns,” US Customs and Border Protection said in a statement without giving details of those concerns.

Artan was issued a visa to travel to the US last week, according to the Somalia Embassy in Kenya that processed it.

The move to deny a FIFA-appointed match official permission to enter the World Cup is highly unusual. Artan was due to meet up with other World Cup referees at their training base in Miami.

Deep regret

"I wanted to thank FIFA for supporting me all the way and the Somali people also. So I am very grateful for FIFA and CAF (Confederation of African Football) also. So this is what I have to say," Artan told reporters at Istanbul Airport before boarding a Turkish Airlines flight to Somalia.

The Somali Football Federation voiced deep regret on Tuesday after Artan was barred from entering the US.

The federation said that no official explanation has been given for the decision, but it urged patience until all the facts have been revealed.