Two of the countries which have qualified for the 2026 World Cup are currently on Donald Trump's travel ban list, potentially causing heartbreak for thousands of travelling fans.
Preparations for the next World Cup are currently ramping up, with the tournament set to kick off in Canada, Mexico and the US next June.
Over a million football fans are expected to flock to North America for the event, including fans from Curacao, Cape Verde, Jordan and Uzbekistan, who will be able to see their nation's make their debut on the world's biggest football stage.
However the controversial policies of President Trump may throw a spanner in the works for fans of two qualified nations, as they are currently on the 79-year-old's list of banned countries.
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Which qualified teams are on Donald Trump's list of banned countries?
Earlier this year Trump resurrected his controversial policy of imposing blanket travel bans on countries around the world, with the June 2025 ban seeing the following nationalities barred from stepping foot on US soil:
- Afghanistan
- Myanmar
- Chad
- Congo-Brazzaville
- Equatorial Guinea
- Eritrea
- Haiti
- Iran
- Libya
- Somalia
- Sudan
- Yemen
Meanwhile partial travel restrictions were imposed on the following seven countries: Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela.
This means that fans from Iran, who qualified for their seventh World Cup earlier this year, and Haiti, who ended a 51-year drought with their qualification, won't be able to see their teams play in person.
Iran and Haiti's World Cup dreams aren't entirely over, as the ban has an exemption for 'any athlete or member of an athletic team, including coaches, persons performing a necessary support role, and immediate relatives, traveling for the World Cup, Olympics, or other major sporting event as determined by the Secretary of State' are permitted to enter the US.
However this courtesy does not extend to fans.
A glimmer of hope was provided for fans by FIFA president Gianni Infantino, who said earlier this year: "America will welcome the world. Everyone who wants to come here to enjoy, to have fun and to celebrate the game will be able to do that."
Meanwhile fans from qualifying countries will benefit from a prioritised visa system announced by the US for the tournament.
Unveiled earlier this week, the FIFA Prioritised Appointment Scheduling System (Pass) will prioritise fans traveling with tickets, meaning they will be able to get an embassy appointment within six to eight weeks of applying.
"We're going to do the same vetting as anybody else would get. The only difference here is we're moving them up in the queue," Secretary of State Marco Rubio said of the policy (via BBC).
Topics: Donald Trump, Football, US News, World Cup
Brenna Cooper