Wahi Denied Canada Entry for World Cup Game vs Germany
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- Elye Wahi was denied entry to Canada for Ivory Coast's World Cup group game against Germany in Toronto on Saturday, with the Ivorian Football Federation saying necessary administrative authorizations could not be obtained.
- The Marseille public prosecutor's office confirmed a 23-year-old Ligue 1 player — not publicly named — was arrested last month as part of an investigation into organised fraud, sports corruption, handling the proceeds of crime, and money laundering.
- The LFP said it was alerted to "an unusually high volume of bets" on a warning involving Wahi; the booking in Nice's May match against Metz was his fifth in the league and triggered a suspension for the first leg of their relegation play-off.
- Wahi will remain in the United States while the squad faces Germany in Toronto and Curacao in Philadelphia next Thursday; the 23-year-old had started Ivory Coast's World Cup win over Ecuador.
- Thomas Partey was the first World Cup player denied Canadian entry, refused a visa because of UK criminal proceedings — he faces seven counts of rape and one of sexual assault — and wrongly told officials he had never been arrested or charged.
- Ghana's government appealed to a federal court in Ottawa for Partey to enter briefly for the Panama match; the appeal was rejected and he missed Ghana's World Cup win over Panama.
Why it matters: Wahi's absence strips Ivory Coast of a forward who started their World Cup win over Ecuador ahead of Saturday's group game against Germany. The case is the second time Canada has turned away a World Cup player over legal proceedings, following the rejected federal-court appeal for Ghana's Thomas Partey — a precedent that signals Canadian authorities are enforcing entry rules strictly during the tournament.
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