Europe football’s governing body UEFA has announced that Somali referee Omar Artan, denied entry into the United States of America for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, will officiate the UEFA Super Cup match between Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain and Europa League champions Aston Villa. 

UEFA confirmed the decision in a statement on Thursday, stating that the appointment was made possible through the framework of the Memorandum of Understanding signed between the confederation and the Confederation of Africa Football last month.

The match will take place in Austria on August 12, 2026.

“Following discussions with its sister confederation, Confédération Africaine de Football (CAF), UEFA has today appointed Somali referee Omar Artan to officiate the 2026 UEFA Super Cup, which will take place on 12 August in Salzburg between UEFA Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain and UEFA Europa League winners Aston Villa FC,” UEFA said. 

The body added, “The decision to appoint Artan to officiate the UEFA Super Cup match has been made in the framework of the Memorandum of Understanding (“MoU”) recently signed between UEFA and CAF to encourage cooperation in many areas, including refereeing. 

“UEFA and CAF are united by a shared commitment to developing football at all levels and promoting the core values of unity, equality and non-discrimination.”

The 34-year-old was one of the 52 centre referees initially selected by FIFA to officiate at the World Cup starting on Thursday but was declared inadmissible upon his arrival in the United States on Saturday by Customs and Border Protection before being deported to Turkey, where he had arrived from after 11-hour interrogation. 

“Omar Artan has made Somalia and the entire people of the African Continent, extremely proud. His receipt of the CAF Men’s Referee of the Year Award 2025 and his appointment as a referee of the FIFA World Cup 2026 are a recognition of his world-class refereeing ability and the international respect that he enjoys,” CAF president Patrice Motsepe stated in his reaction to the announcement.