World Cup 2026: Canada refuses to allow Ghana’s Thomas Partey into country after visa appeal – despite being let in by US
A motion to review the decision to deny Ghana midfielder Thomas Partey a Canadian visa has been dismissed by the country’s federal court.
The Ghanaian government filed for a review of the case after Partey was denied entry to Canada, ruling him out of the Black Stars’ World Cup opener against Panama in Toronto on Wednesday.
However, the motion for review was dismissed by the Ottawa court on Tuesday.
The former Arsenal midfielder’s visa issues relate to ongoing criminal proceedings in the UK.
The 33-year-old denies seven charges of rape and one count of sexual assault, relating to allegations by four different women between 2020 and 2022, and is due to stand trial next year.
Partey, who played in Spain for Villarreal this past season, has pleaded not guilty.
His lawyer said in March that the player intends to plead not guilty to two new charges of rape after a woman alleged that he twice raped her on the same day in December 2020.
He had separately been awaiting trial on five counts of rape related to two other women and one count of sexual assault involving another woman, and the new allegations arose after the first set of charges were publicised.
Ghana coach Carlos Queiroz had cited a presumption of innocence for Partey when he included the player in his World Cup squad.
The U.S. government has granted Partey a visa, but Canada’s immigration officials said that under Canadian law, foreign nationals can be found inadmissible without a foreign conviction.
“When there are reasonable grounds to believe an act that would trigger inadmissibility has been committed by an applicant, they can be deemed inadmissible to Canada,” a spokesperson for Canada’s Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada told Reuters.
In Ghana and across Canada’s Ghanaian diaspora, Partey’s visa refusal has led to anger and frustration among the fans.
Speaking to Reuters on Monday, Akua Mensah, 45, a Canadian with Ghanaian roots, said the decision by the Canadian government was unfortunate.
Ghana’s base camp for the World Cup is in Smithfield, Rhode Island, where Partey has been able to train after being allowed into the United States.
As a result, Partey will still be eligible to play when Ghana face England in Massachusetts on 23 June.
Ghana then conclude their group stage against Croatia in Philadelphia on 27 June.
