Justice Roger Lafrenière, who heard the application on Tuesday morning in Ottawa, refused to override Canada’s earlier decision to deem the Villarreal midfielder inadmissible to the country.
The ruling came less than 48 hours before kick-off and brought to a close a frantic week of diplomatic and legal efforts to get Ghana’s vice captain on the pitch in Toronto.
How it got here
Partey was first refused a Temporary Resident Visa by Canadian immigration authorities on Friday after his biometrics appointment at the High Commission in London.
Officials found him inadmissible under Canada’s serious criminality provisions, which allow entry to be denied to a foreign national charged with offences abroad that would carry a sentence of at least ten years in prison if committed in Canada.
The 33-year-old is awaiting trial in the United Kingdom on seven counts of rape and one count of sexual assault, brought by London’s Metropolitan Police.
The charges relate to three women and date to the period between 2020 and 2022, when Partey was playing for Arsenal. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges, and his trial is now expected to begin in 2027 at Southwark Crown Court.
The Ghanaian government responded forcefully, with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs describing the refusal as a “high-handed and extremely unfair decision” and lodging a formal note of protest with Global Affairs Canada.
Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa personally wrote to his Canadian counterpart, appealing for compassion and pointing to the wider symbolism of the moment.
“It would be a source of lasting appreciation to the people of Ghana, and a fitting expression of the friendship between our two countries, that a young man entrusted with a national duty is permitted to stand among his compatriots and represent his nation upon the field,” Ablakwa wrote in a three-page letter filed with the court.
When diplomacy stalled, Partey’s legal team took the matter to the Federal Court, seeking an injunction that would allow him to travel temporarily for the Panama fixture pending a full determination of his case.
The ruling
Justice Lafrenière, however, was unmoved. In his decision, he ruled that Partey had failed to establish the grounds required for emergency relief and that the balance of convenience tilted firmly in favour of preserving Canada’s immigration rules.
The judge held that immigration officers were entitled to weigh the charges Partey faces in England in assessing admissibility, and he expressly rejected the argument that an unconvicted accused could not be turned away at the border.
Lawyers for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada had argued that Partey’s inadmissibility was “reasonable given the detailed and graphic allegations of sexual violence,” and that any damage to his reputation flowed from the UK proceedings themselves, not from Canada’s application of its laws.
They added that the player’s “interest in attending a single, time-limited professional engagement in Canada, however important it is to him or Ghana’s team, does not outweigh Canada’s public interest in the careful, consistent application of its serious criminality inadmissibility regime.”
Partey’s counsel, Mackeda Bramwell, had pressed a competing public-interest argument in written submissions:
“Canada is a host nation of the 2026 FIFA World Cup and has an interest in the orderly participation of accredited national-team athletes.”
In his own affidavit, Partey reminded the court that “I have not been convicted of any offence. I have pleaded not guilty, and I remain presumed innocent,” adding that millions of Ghanaians were hoping for a chance to advance.
Court documents also revealed an awkward wrinkle which shows that Partey did not personally complete his Canadian immigration form.
A Ghana Football Association (GFA) official filled it on his behalf and indicated that Partey had never been arrested or charged with a crime, a representation directly contradicted by the live UK proceedings.
While declining to intervene, Justice Lafrenière did urge Canadian immigration officials to move quickly on Partey’s outstanding requests for reconsideration and for a temporary resident permit.
What it means for the Black Stars
Ghana face Panama at BMO Field in Toronto on June 17th without one of their most influential players.
Head coach Carlos Queiroz, asked about the situation before the ruling came down, struck a pragmatic note. “My business, it is to play with the cards that I have in front of me,” the Portuguese tactician said. “We are waiting for a decision.”
There is, however, a measure of relief in the wider picture. The remainder of Ghana’s Group L campaign takes place on American soil, where Partey already holds a valid visa and has been training with the squad at their base camp in Rhode Island.
He will be eligible to face England in Foxborough, Massachusetts, on June 23rd and Croatia in Philadelphia on June 27th.
Follow their opener with Flashscore.
FIFA World Cup 2026
The 2026 World Cup is taking place from June 11th to July 19th in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The tournament features 48 national teams and is played at 16 modern stadiums.
Match schedule and times | Group tables | How to watch the World Cup | World Cup Format | Past winners of the World Cup