White House Defends World Cup Entry Denials
Andrew Giuliani, executive director of the White House Task Force on the FIFA World Cup, suggested the decision to block Somali referee Omar Abdulkadir Artan "was for very good reason," without elaborating. The remarks come as US President Donald Trump has repeatedly deployed some of his most incendiary language against Somalia, telling a Cabinet meeting as recently as two weeks ago of Somalis: "They're all crooks."
Turning to the Iranian delegation, Giuliani said 31 players and the primary coaching staff received entry approval, but that several other officials were turned away. He suggested a degree of misrepresentation may have been at play. "As you can imagine, there are some people that claim that they are coaches that may not be coaches," he said.
Giuliani was unequivocal on the administration's position regarding Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, stating that individuals "directly working with the IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps) have no ability to access the United States." The Iranian squad will instead be based in Tijuana, Mexico — which Giuliani described as a "real quick" 25-minute flight to Los Angeles for their matches.
The US and Israel launched an undeclared war against Iran on Feb. 28, a conflict currently under ceasefire, though that fragile truce appeared close to collapse earlier this week.
Despite the sweeping restrictions, Giuliani insisted that President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio remain committed to delivering a "level playing field" for all competing nations. He also pushed back on reports of intensive screening applied to teams from Senegal and Uzbekistan, characterizing "secondary screening" as a routine safety measure applied universally across all fans and players.
The administration's visa policies have drawn sustained criticism, with opponents accusing Washington of applying politically motivated and racially discriminatory criteria — pointing to the refusal of visas to Palestinian officials seeking to attend last autumn's UN General Assembly, as well as broader patterns of exclusion targeting indigenous people from non-European countries.
— Super Bowl-Level Security Across All 78 Matches —
On the security front, Giuliani outlined an unprecedented protective architecture for the tournament. He said each US-based match "will be set up like a Super Bowl," with fans subjected to multiple perimeter checks beginning from the moment they board public transportation heading to venues.
All 78 tournament matches will operate under "counter UAS (unmanned aircraft system mitigation) coverage" to neutralize unauthorized drone threats. The federal government has allocated a $500 million counter-drone grant to reimburse local law enforcement agencies, while the FBI has established a dedicated training center to "deputize" local officers in the deployment of drone mitigation technology.
Giuliani also highlighted a trilateral security and health framework coordinated between Washington, Ottawa, and Mexico City, with all three host nations aligning their health protocols to prevent cross-border transmission of diseases including Ebola.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup runs from June 11 to July 19 across 16 host cities in Canada, Mexico, and the US, with the tournament final scheduled at the New Jersey New York Stadium.
Legal Disclaimer:
EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
