For thousands of football fans across Africa, the biggest obstacle to attending the 2026 FIFA World Cup wasn't securing a match ticket, but obtaining a visa.
New data from Canada's Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), provided to CTV News, reveals that visitor visa applicants from several African countries faced some of the highest refusal rates among nations seeking to travel to Canada for the tournament.
Business Insider Africa analyzed the data, focusing on African countries with at least 100 processed FIFA World Cup visitor visa applications between November 14, 2025, and March 31, 2026, to ensure meaningful comparisons.
The analysis shows refusal rates ranging from 59.1% to as high as 96.1%, reflecting the significant visa hurdles faced by many African supporters hoping to attend football's biggest event.
The figures relate to temporary resident visa (TRV) and electronic travel authorization (eTA) applications that were identified as World Cup travel requests.
