Ghana midfielder Thomas Partey has been denied entry into Canada over sexual charges levelled against him by a London Court that is set to keep him out of contention to play Ghana’s opening game at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The Black Stars are scheduled to play against Panama on Wednesday, June 17 in Canada but Ghana is likely going to do so without its deputy captain after he was denied a visa to travel to Canada to play in the game with the visa denial tied to the seven counts of rape and one count of sexual assault he has been charged with. He has pleaded not guilty to all the charges that were levelled against him that date back to 2025.
In reaction to the news, Ghana’s Sports Minister Kofi Adams indicated that Ghana had taken steps to appeal the decision and slammed Canada’s stance by stating on Channel One TV that,
“Even in the country where they claim he committed the act, for which reason he is in court, which he has denied, he is still living there, as a free citizen…so one is therefore surprised that Canada — which is so far away — will now apply rules to the extent where somebody has merely been charged. This is absolutely wrong.”
On the other hand a representative of Canada’s Ministry of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship said to ESPN that Partey’s visa denial was down to “assessing [every person seeking to come to Canada] individually, based on facts available and the law that applies.”
Partey played out the 2025-2026 season with Spanish La Liga side Villarreal.
