A FIFA World Cup host country must guarantee two fundamental principles: the safety of the country — and the unrestricted entry of all qualified teams, officials and referees. The case of referee Omar Artan from Somalia is against one of these obligations. FIFA must never compromise the universality of football. #Fifa #Somalia #GianniInfantino #CAF #OmarAtan #DonaldTrump
Government of Ghana’s strong reservations and high stakes diplomatic interventions following the Canadian Visa Refusal of Thomas Teye Partey of the Black Stars FIFA World Cup team.
🚨 OFFICIAL: 🇬🇭 Ghana sends "an official note of protest to Global Affairs Canada" urging review of its decision to deny entry to Thomas Partey ahead of Panama World Cup opener.
Statement from Foreign Affairs Minister attached:
🚨📲 Thomas Partey official statement after being denied access to Canada 🇨🇦.
"I am deeply disappointed not to be able to join my teammates in Canada for our opening World Cup match against Panama. Representing Ghana on the biggest stage is an honour I take very seriously, and I was fully prepared and looking forward to contributing to the team. While I respect the decisions of the authorities, I remain focused on proving my innocence in the ongoing matter in the UK, as I have always maintained. I have cooperated fully throughout and believe in the process. My thoughts are with the Black Stars and Coach Queiroz as they prepare for this important game. I will continue to support the team from afar and am committed to being available for the matches ahead where possible. Ghana, we fight together—on and off the pitch. Thank you to the fans for your continued support. Let's make this World Cup one to remember."
🚨🗣️ 𝗡𝗘𝗪: Benjamin Mendy on Thomas Partey ruled out of Ghana’s crucial opening World Cup match against Panama due to his visa being denied by Canada over unproven allegations:
“People are asking me what I think about Thomas Partey being refused entry into Canada, and my answer is simple: football is becoming a courtroom where the verdict is delivered before the trial even begins.
I’ve seen this movie before. The headlines arrive first, the judgment follows immediately, and the truth is left struggling to catch up. In today’s world, an accusation can spread across the planet in seconds, while facts have to walk barefoot through a storm just to be heard.
We keep hearing people say, ‘No one is above the law.’ I agree completely. But the law works both ways. Justice isn’t only about punishment; it’s also about fairness. If we’re willing to throw away the principle of innocence the moment a headline appears, then we are replacing justice with emotion.
Football fans need to understand the danger here. Today it’s Thomas Partey. Yesterday it was someone else. Tomorrow it could be your favorite player. Once you create a culture where allegations alone are enough to destroy reputations in the eyes of millions, you’ve opened a door that won’t be easy to close.
Social media has become a wildfire. One spark, and suddenly everyone wants to be the judge, the jury, and the executioner. Careers are burned to ashes before a single verdict is reached. People speak with absolute certainty about things they know only through tweets, clips, and headlines.
And let’s be honest: if Thomas Partey was available and scoring goals next week, many of the same people acting morally superior today would be celebrating him if he played for their club. Football has always had selective outrage. Fans often care less about principles and more about whose badge is on the shirt.
What I see today is a dangerous trend. We are moving toward a world where public opinion carries more weight than due process. A world where hashtags are treated like evidence and viral posts are treated like legal documents.
Nobody is asking for special treatment. Nobody is asking for immunity. All I’m saying is that justice should remain in the hands of courts, not timelines. Let investigations speak. Let evidence speak. Let facts speak.
Because if football continues down this road, the game won’t be decided on the pitch anymore. It’ll be decided by whoever can generate the loudest outrage online.
And that’s a far more frightening precedent than any result on a football field.”
— TalksViewPodcast /YT
If you know you won’t allow partey to your country , you will have to first send notice to Ghana 🇬🇭 so we know how to prepare without him , you don’t wait the time they are entering your country then you deny him , horrible decision from Canada 🇨🇦.
🚨🎙️Didier Drogba: "African Teams Cannot Keep Paying The Price"
With what I'm hearing, I don't think this is heading in the right direction.
First, Ghana could be without Thomas Partey for an important match because of issues unrelated to the competition. That's a huge setback, not just for the team but for the entire country.
Now we're hearing reports of Senegalese fans facing visa difficulties. How is that fair? Imagine playing one of the biggest matches of your life without the support of your fans in the stadium.
Football is about competition, atmosphere and national pride. Supporters are part of that experience.
I think something has to be done and adjusted immediately because, from where I'm standing, it feels like African teams and African supporters are the ones being affected the most.
🚨 BREAKING: Jamie Carragher blasts FIFA and Canada over Thomas Partey visa controversy
"This is an absolute disgrace from a tournament planning point of view. You spend years building towards a World Cup, qualifying, preparing squads, getting everything right — and then something like this happens days before kickoff. It’s just not acceptable at this level of football."
"If Thomas Partey is part of Ghana’s plans and has been cleared to be in the squad, then how does it get to a point where a visa issue knocks him out of the opening game against Panama? That’s not football, that’s administration failure."
"I don’t care who is responsible — FIFA, Canada, immigration — someone has to take accountability. You cannot tell fans to invest emotionally in a tournament and then allow situations where key players are missing because paperwork wasn’t sorted in time."
"At the very least, these issues should be resolved weeks before the first match. It’s unfair on the player, it’s unfair on Ghana, and it damages the integrity of the competition. This is exactly the kind of chaos that should never happen at a World Cup."