Partey Loses Court Battle, Will Miss Ghana's Opening World Cup Match

Ghana will be without midfielder Thomas Partey for Wednesday's World Cup opener against Panama after a Canadian court turned down his bid to overturn a visa denial that has kept him out of the country.

Partey's lawyers had pushed for the court to reverse the refusal on Tuesday, but the judge sided with immigration officials, leaving the former Arsenal man stuck outside Canada while the rest of the Black Stars squad is already in Toronto.

At the center of the case is a UK criminal trial Partey is facing later this year. He is charged with seven counts of rape and one count of sexual assault, brought by four women over alleged incidents between 2020 and 2022. He denies all of the charges.

Ghana's government pushed back hard against the ruling, calling it unfair and out of line.

Inside the team camp, the mood was more practical. People close to the squad say head coach Carlos Queiroz had already built his game plan assuming Partey might not be cleared in time, so the court's timing changed little at this stage. Queiroz gave a similarly low-key response when reporters asked him about it Tuesday. He said he simply works with whoever is available to him, that the squad is still waiting on word about Partey, and that his plan covers the full 26-man roster regardless of how things shake out.

Ghana, four-time champions of Africa, are not writing Partey off for the tournament. He is expected to link back up with the team for their next two group games, against England in Boston on June 23 and Croatia in Philadelphia on June 27. If Ghana ends up finishing second in Group L, the team would return to Canada for the round of 32, giving Partey another shot at clearing things up before then