Iran confirms World Cup participation, issues 10 demands to host nations

Iran Confirms World Cup Participation With Conditions for Hosts

Iran’s football federation confirmed Saturday that the national team will compete in the 2026 FIFA World Cup but issued a list of demands for joint hosts the United States, Canada, and Mexico, setting the stage for a high-stakes diplomatic negotiation weeks before the tournament begins.

Ten Conditions for Entry

“We will definitely participate in the 2026 World Cup, but the hosts must take our concerns into account,” the Iranian federation said on its official website Saturday. “We will participate in the World Cup tournament, but without any retreat from our beliefs, culture, and convictions.”newarab

FFIRI president Mehdi Taj told Iranian state television on Friday that Tehran has ten conditions for attending the tournament. Among them: all players and technical staff — particularly those who completed mandatory military service in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), such as Mehdi Taremi and Ehsan Hajsafi — must be granted U.S. visas without complications. Taj also demanded respect for the national flag and anthem, a ban on politically motivated statements targeting the team, and high-level security at airports, hotels, and routes to stadiums.freemalaysiatoday

Iran also wants opposition flags banned from stadiums and restrictions on politically charged questions at press conferences, according to reporting by IranWire.iranwire

FIFA and Washington Respond

FIFA President Gianni Infantino has repeatedly affirmed that Iran will play in the United States as scheduled. “Of course Iran will play in the United States of America,” Infantino told delegates at FIFA’s annual congress in Vancouver on April 30, adding that “we need to unite.”yahoo

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said last month that Iranian players would be welcomed but that IRGC-linked delegation members could face entry restrictions. “The issue with Iran isn’t their athletes. It pertains to some other individuals they might wish to bring, many of whom are linked to the IRGC,” Rubio told reporters in April.aljazeera

Schedule and Logistics

Iran is scheduled to open its campaign against New Zealand at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on June 15, face Belgium at the same venue on June 21, and close group play against Egypt at Lumen Field in Seattle on June 26. The squad is expected to arrive at its training base in Tucson, Arizona, by June 10.yahoo

FIFA’s secretary general has invited an Iranian delegation to Zurich by a May 20 deadline to finalize arrangements, according to the Associated Press, leaving just three weeks to resolve the standoff before Iran is due on American soil.espn