BREAKING: Ghana’s Thomas Partey barred from entering Canada amid rape allegations | OneFootball

Ollie Whitmore, Chief football news reporter

Content warning: this story contains references to sexual assault. Reader discretion is advised.

Ghana midfielder Thomas Partey has been barred from entering Canada for their opening World Cup match, an official statement by FIFA has confirmed.

The 32-year-old former Arsenal midfielder has seen his latest visa application rejected by the host country’s administration, meaning he will not partake in Ghana’s opening Group L fixture against Panama on Thursday 17th of June.

The Ghanaian pleaded not guilty to two new counts of raping a woman in Demember 2020 at Southwark Crown Court in April, and has pleaded not guilty to seven counts of rape and one of sexual assault involving four women in total between 2020 and 2022.

His country is also one of two whose training camps for the 2026 World Cup are based in Canada.

Partey, who now plays for Spanish club Villareal, was initially granted a US visa before the tournament and will still be eligible to play against England in Boston on the 23rd of June, as well as Ghana’s final group game against Croatia in Philadelphia on the 27th of June.

While FIFA did not relay a specific reason for his visa not getting processed by Canada’s administration in their statement, Partey is currently battling a legal challenge by a claimant on the grounds of rape.

FIFA’s statement read: “FIFA can confirm that player Thomas Partey will not be able to travel from Ghana’s base camp in Boston, USA, to Canada for their opening match against Panama on Wednesday, June 17th, as his visa application has been rejected by the Canadian government.

“FIFA is not involved in the immigration processes of the host countries, including the issuance of visas. As with previous FIFA events, the host government ultimately determines who receives a visa and is admitted into the country.”

Partey had been expected to participated with Ghana at the 2026 World Cup following his £45m move from Premier League champions Arsenal to Atlético Madrid back in 2020, but will now not be playing alongside his teammates against Panama.

It comes as Ghana’s manager Carlos Queiroz, one of the World Cup’s most senior managers aged over 70, encouraged the press to let events “run their normal course” while assuring that he had no concerns around selecting Partey for his World Cup squad.

He said: “I don’t have any comments about my own decisions. He is here so what are we talking about? This is not for me or you to make a judgement about.

“Let the events run their normal course; let the river flow and one day when the river meets the ocean we are going to find the truth.”

Partey is due to stand trial next year.

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