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Just days before the 2026 FIFA World Cup begins, several national teams and match officials have faced visa denials, airport questioning, and strict security checks upon arrival in the United States, one of the tournament's three host countries.
These incidents, which involve Iran, Iraq, Senegal, Uzbekistan, and a FIFA-appointed referee from Somalia, have led to criticism from the global football community.
So far, FIFA has not made any public statements about these cases.
Iran, which is in Group G with Belgium, Egypt, and New Zealand, had a long dispute with US immigration officials over entry visas.
Players, head coach Amir Ghalenoi, and some members of the technical staff received visas, but 13 members of the administrative and technical team were denied entry.
Iran asked FIFA to help, but nothing changed. As a result, the team moved its pre-tournament base from Arizona to Tijuana, Mexico.
They will still have to travel to the US for all three of their group-stage matches.
One of the most widely reported cases involved Aymen Hussein, a leading player for Iraq.
He was held at Chicago O'Hare International Airport for about seven hours.
Iraqi sources said his mobile phone was also checked. The team's official photographer was not allowed to enter the US at all.
Iraq is appearing at the World Cup for the first time since 1986.
Omar Artan, a Somali referee chosen by FIFA for the World Cup, was turned away after being screened at Miami International Airport.
Artan, who was named Africa's best referee by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) in 2025, was going to be the first Somali referee at a World Cup.
Videos on social media showed Senegal's national team undergoing detailed security checks upon arrival in the US. Each player was checked one by one before they could go to the terminal.
Uzbekistan faced a similar situation. The team traveled to New York for a warm-up match against the Netherlands and was only allowed into the stadium after a security check with police dogs.
This year is also Uzbekistan's first time at the World Cup. The security checks the team went through got a lot of attention online.
In all these cases, FIFA has not made any public comments or confirmed whether it tried to help those affected.
These events have sparked debate about whether FIFA has the tools or the desire to protect teams from entry barriers set by host countries.
Hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, the tournament is set to feature 48 nations competing across 16 groups.
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