Haiti player awaits US visa to join World Cup training

With just weeks remaining until the start of the World Cup, the only member of Haiti’s national soccer team based in the country is awaiting a U.S. visa to join his teammates training in Florida. Defensive midfielder Woodensky Pierre, who plays for Violette AC in Port-au-Prince, is the sole player on the 26-man squad who resides in Haiti, with the others competing in leagues across Europe and North America.

Pierre’s visa application, along with those of nearly a dozen Haitian soccer federation officials, remains pending as the U.S. government continues to enforce travel restrictions affecting Haiti. A spokesperson for the Haitian Football Federation, Thecieux Jeanty, said the process is underway with government support. He described Pierre’s potential participation as highly symbolic for a nation gripped by a severe security and political crisis. An estimated 70 percent of the capital, Port-au-Prince, is under siege by violent gangs.

Jeanty said Pierre continues to train at a field in Pétion-Ville, an upscale area of the capital, while awaiting his visa. The player is from Cite Soleil, a seaside slum that has endured years of violence and hunger and serves as a base for powerful...