World Cup 2026: Thomas Partey likely to miss Ghana opener after visa appeal rejected

Thomas Partey will miss Ghana’s World Cup opener against Panama after he falsely told Canadian authorities he had never been arrested and charged with a crime.

Partey, 33, was barred from entering Canada ahead of Wednesday’s game in Toronto because of pending criminal charges in England.

The Ghanaian government had applied for permission for him to enter the country for a short period of time to participate in the Games, but the appeal was rejected by the Federal Court in Ottawa.

The appeal decision said there was no serious issue in the basic refusal of the visa and “failed to disclose that the applicant has had a number of criminal charges for sexual assault in the UK”.

Between 2020 and 2022, former Arsenal player Partey pleaded not guilty to seven counts of rape and one count of sexual assault against four different women and is due to go on trial next year.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada told the BBC: “Canada has maintained that dealing with a series of cases will not change Canada’s immigration laws.

“Each person seeking to come to Canada will be assessed on an individual basis, based on the facts and the applicable law.”