Updated

Updated · Forbes · Jun 12

Canada Bars Thomas Partey Over 8 Sex-Offense Charges, Sidelining Ghana Midfielder for June 17 Opener

Updated

Updated · Forbes · Jun 12

Canada Bars Thomas Partey Over 8 Sex-Offense Charges, Sidelining Ghana Midfielder for June 17 Opener

Q: Why can a World Cup star play in the US but is banned from Canada over the same criminal charges?

Because the U.S. and Canada apply different immigration laws and different levels of discretion to non-citizens facing serious criminal allegations. In Partey’s case, the key fact is that he has been charged, but not convicted, and he denies the allegations. U.S. authorities appear to have allowed him in after a broader, case-by-case assessment. Under U.S. visa rules, allegations tied to serious offenses can trigger scrutiny, but officials still have room to approve entry, especially where there is no conviction and the traveler is entering for a major international event. Canada’s system is often stricter on “admissibility.” Its immigration authorities can refuse entry if they believe an applicant raises criminality or public-safety concerns, and they are not required to follow FIFA’s sporting priorities. FIFA itself has said host governments alone decide who gets a visa. In practice, that means Canada can deny entry even when another host country allows it. So the difference is not that the charges changed; it is that the legal threshold and official discretion changed at the border. The U.S. approved Partey’s visa despite the pending case, while Canada decided the same allegations were enough to refuse him entry. This is also a broader World Cup issue. Co-hosting does not create a single immigration regime, and players, staff and fans can face different outcomes in each host country depending on local visa law, waivers and admissibility rules.

3 articles · Updated · Forbes · Jun 12

FIFA confirmed Thomas Partey cannot travel from Ghana’s Boston base to Toronto for the June 17 World Cup opener against Panama after Canada denied him entry.
Eight charges in London—seven counts of rape and one of sexual assault—triggered the refusal under Canadian rules allowing authorities to bar people who have committed or been convicted of a crime; Partey has pleaded not guilty.
The 32-year-old, who joined Arsenal in a €50 million move in 2020 and now plays for Villarreal, remains available for Ghana’s later U.S. matches in Boston on June 23 and Philadelphia on June 27.
Partey’s case adds to wider World Cup travel disruptions, with Somali referee Omar Artan blocked from the U.S. by a travel ban and Iran’s team only receiving last-minute U.S. visas.