Donald Trump speaking at a podium. This image accompanies an article about FW de Klerk Foundation condemning Donald Trump's utterances about South Africa ahead of the G20
Donald Trump. Image: Wikimedia Commons

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FIFA World Cup: Chaos as Trump denies fans of 15 nations US entry!

US president Donald Trump has paused visa applications of 75 different countries, 15 of which have qualified for the FIFA World Cup.

14-01-26 20:25
Donald Trump speaking at a podium. This image accompanies an article about FW de Klerk Foundation condemning Donald Trump's utterances about South Africa ahead of the G20
Donald Trump. Image: Wikimedia Commons

The 2026 FIFA World Cup has again been thrown into tatters after US president Donald Trump decided to freeze visa applications of fans of 15 nations that qualified for the global showpiece.

On Wednesday, the State Department released an internal memo that directed officers to deny 75 different countries visas.

According to the internal memo, this would allow the department to re-examine procedures for screening and vetting applicants.

Should Trump decide to go ahead with the sanctioning of those countries, especially of those participating nations, then we could see a World Cup with emptier stadiums in the US.

Also read | FIFA World Cup: How to buy tickets for the final

FIFA WORLD CUP: WHICH 15 NATIONS HAVE TRUMP “DENIED” US VISAS?

  1. Algeria
  2. Cape Verde
  3. Colombia
  4. Cote d’Ivoire
  5. Egypt
  6. Ghana
  7. Iran
  8. Jordan
  9. Senegal,
  10. Tunisia
  11. Uruguay
  12. Uzbekistan
  13. Brazil
  14. Morocco
  15. Haiti

WHEN IS THE GLOBAL SHOWPIECE?

This year’s FIFA World Cup tournament will get underway on Thursday, 11 June and the final is scheduled for 19 July.

Co-hosts Mexico will face Bafana Bafana in their opening match in what will be a repeat of the 2010 edition in South Africa.