- Snubbed for World Cup, Celebrated by Europe: Omar Artan to Officiate UEFA Super Cup
Somali referee Omar Artan has been handed one of the biggest appointments of his career after being selected to officiate the 2026 UEFA Super Cup between Paris Saint-Germain and Aston Villa FC in Salzburg on August 12.
The appointment, announced jointly by UEFA and Confederation of African Football, comes just weeks after Artan was unable to participate in the 2026 FIFA World Cup despite being named on FIFA’s official list of match officials.
CAF confirmed that Artan could not take part in the tournament after he was denied entry into the United States, where the World Cup is being staged. In response, UEFA moved swiftly to recognise the highly-rated official by appointing him to oversee one of Europe’s marquee curtain-raiser fixtures.
The UEFA Super Cup traditionally pits the winners of the UEFA Champions League against the Europa League champions, making it one of the most prestigious single-match assignments in world football.
Artan’s selection is another milestone in a rapidly rising refereeing career. The Somali official has been on FIFA’s international referees list since 2018 and earned widespread praise for his performances across continental competitions. One of the standout moments of his career came when he officiated the second leg of the 2025/26 CAF Champions League final.
His consistency and command on the pitch also saw him crowned CAF Men’s Referee of the Year in 2025, cementing his reputation as one of Africa’s leading match officials.
UEFA president Aleksander Čeferin described Artan as an elite referee whose abilities deserved recognition on the global stage.
“Football is made to connect people, and UEFA wants to show its respect to Omar and his outstanding officiating skills, which had earned him such a prestigious nomination,” Čeferin said while thanking CAF president Patrice Motsepe for supporting the initiative.
The appointment was made under the recently signed cooperation agreement between UEFA and CAF, aimed at strengthening collaboration in several areas of football development, including refereeing standards and exchanges.
Motsepe praised Artan’s achievement as a proud moment not only for Somalia but for the entire African continent.
“Omar Artan has made Somalia and the entire people of the African continent extremely proud,” Motsepe said. “This is a great honour for Omar Artan and for African referees, and is also an excellent example of football bringing together and uniting people from Africa and Europe and worldwide.”
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