Soccer-Boca Juniors defender Costa denied US visa, misses Club World Cup
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Argentine Primera Division - River Plate v Boca Juniors - Estadio Mas Monumental, Buenos Aires, Argentina - April 27, 2025 Boca Juniors' Ayrton Costa in action with River Plate's Sebastian Driussi REUTERS/Rodrigo Valle/File Photo
(Reuters) -Boca Juniors defender Ayrton Costa will miss the Club World Cup after being denied a visa to enter the United States due to a criminal complaint against him in his native Argentina, the club confirmed on Thursday.
In 2023, Costa accepted a probationary sentence to avoid trial for an aggravated robbery in 2018, which U.S. officials ruled that he is still serving.
Criminal convictions are grounds for inadmissibility to the United States. The decision comes amid a broader crackdown by the Trump administration on issuing visas to some visitors and students.
"We can confirm Ayrton Costa is set to miss the Club World Cup with Boca," a club spokesperson told Reuters.
"The defender was due to travel on Wednesday night ... but did not obtain the visa."
The U.S. embassy in Buenos Aires was not immediately available to respond to a request for comment emailed outside of normal business hours, it said in an automated reply.
Boca's opening game is against Portuguese side Benfica in Miami on Monday.
(Reporting by Angelica Medina and Ramiro Scandolo; Additional reporting by Simon Jennings; Editing by Ken Ferris and Sonali Paul)
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