Omar Artan to referee UEFA Super Cup after being refused entry to USA for World Cup

[p]Omar Artan was due to be the first referee from Somalia to officiate at a World Cup after being named Africa’s best male referee in 2025. However, after being denied entry to the country at Miami International Airport by Customs and Border Protection following a lengthy interrogation, he was denied entry to the US, despite holding a diplomatic passport. [/p][p]Andrew Giuliani, the executive director of the White House Task Force on the World Cup defended the decision this week, stating: [/p][p]"To this point, we’ve had 35 teams that have come into the United States. No players, no coaches have been denied. [/p][p][b]"There have been some officials that have been denied, and for good reason." [/b][/p][p]The decision was met by mass criticism, and as Artan returned to Somalia, he received a hero’s welcome on arrival in Mogadishu. [/p][p]Now, as he deals with missing out on the World Cup. UEFA have announced that Artan will officiate the 2026 UEFA Super Cup between Europa League winners [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/aston-villa/W00wmLO0/"]Aston Villa[/a] and Champions League winners [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/psg/CjhkPw0k/"]Paris Saint-Germain[/a]. [/p][embed guid="0c084bbb-4d4a-498b-ad7e-f1b6278ca7bc" url="https://x.com/UEFA/status/2065057712812302521?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p]UEFA president Alexander Ceferin commented on the decision, which has been welcomed with open arms by fans. [/p][p]"Omar Artan is an excellent young but already experienced referee, who has proven himself at the highest competition level of the Confederation of African Football. [/p][p][b]"Football is made to connect people, and UEFA wants to show its respect to Omar and his outstanding officiating skills, which had earned him such a prestigious nomination. I am grateful to my friend CAF President Patrice Motsepe for supporting enthusiastically our initiative.” [/b][/p]