Iran has announced that it is in discussions with FIFA to hold its World Cup matches outside the United States, following warnings from Donald Trump to the Iranian national team last week.
The Iranian embassy in Mexico stated that its football federation prefers matches to take place in the host country, but FIFA reportedly hesitates to move games less than 100 days before the tournament begins.
Concerns over Iran’s participation grew amid the escalating conflict with the U.S. and Israel. Trump had stated last Thursday: “The Iranian national football team is welcome at the World Cup, but I really don’t think it’s appropriate for them to be there, for their life and safety.”
In response, Mehdi Taj, president of the Iranian Football Federation, said: “Since Trump explicitly declared that he cannot guarantee the safety of the Iranian national team, we will definitely not travel to America. We are currently negotiating with FIFA to organize Iran’s World Cup matches in Mexico.”
Earlier, Iranian Sports Minister Ahmad Donyamal had indicated the team would boycott the tournament due to U.S. and Israeli attacks that killed the country’s supreme leader, triggering retaliatory strikes. Donyamal stressed: “Given the hostile measures taken against Iran, in the past eight or nine months we have faced two wars and thousands of our people have been killed. There is absolutely no possibility for us to participate under these conditions.”
Scheduled Matches and Locations
Iran is slated to play against New Zealand, Belgium, and Egypt on the U.S. West Coast in June. The first two matches are planned at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, and the third in Seattle.
Although the World Cup is technically hosted by Mexico, Canada, and the United States, the majority of matches are in the U.S. If Iran progresses past the group stage, it would likely need to play in the U.S. during the knockout rounds.
When asked by Politico about Iran’s participation last week, Trump replied: “I really don’t care.”
An official withdrawal by Iran would be the first in the modern era of the tournament, leaving FIFA with the urgent task of finding a replacement. However, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) stated on Monday that it had received no notification of Iran’s withdrawal.
“The final decision on participation rests with the federation, and they have confirmed to us that they will attend the World Cup,” said Windsor John, AFC Secretary General.
