<p>Artan had expected to be one of seven elite African referees to be officiating at the World Cup, but was denied entry to the US at the last minute.</p><p>The 34-year-old would have been the first Somali to take charge of a World Cup game, but that dream was stripped from him after he was interrogated for 11 hours by US border officials.</p><p>He has since returned home to a hero’s welcome with the Trump administration claiming he had - unproven - ‘terror’ ties.</p><p>Speaking in a press conference on the day before the tournament, Infantino opted against coming out in support of Artan, instead playing down the matter.</p><p>“When we are confronted with challenges, we have to deal with them,”<em> </em>he said.</p><p>“Sometimes we can solve them and other times we cannot and we try just to make the best.</p><p>“I don’t regret anything. I’ve been organising events for the last 30 years and I’m pretty much used to dealing with issues, big and small.</p><p><strong>“What happened to Omar was unfortunate but we don’t control everything. We try, we discuss, we speak and we see. </strong></p><p><strong>"Maybe sometimes it’s good as well to just, you know, chill, relax.”</strong></p>