Iran and the possibility of participating in the 2026 World Cup

World media reported that Iran's football team is facing the risk of not being able to participate in the 2026 World Cup even though they are one of the earliest teams to get tickets.

Iran's striker Taremi (number 9) was also unable to go to the US to attend the FIFA Club World Cup recently - Photo: REUTERS

The reason stems from political tensions between Iran and the US, in the context that most of the tournament's matches will take place on US soil.

Iran is one of the first teams to qualify for the 2026 World Cup. However, the escalating political situation between Iran and the United States is raising questions about the team's ability to compete in the biggest tournament on the planet.

The 2026 World Cup is scheduled to be held in three countries: the United States, Canada and Mexico. The United States will host 78 of the 104 matches, including most of the knockout matches.

Iran is currently on the list of countries banned from entering the US under the immigration restrictions issued by US President Donald Trump.

This means that not only fans, but even members of the Iranian team could be denied visas to enter the US.

The risk of Iran not being able to participate in the World Cup is entirely real without high-level political intervention or a special exemption mechanism.

Some have suggested that if FIFA and other parties really want Iran to participate, the team could be drawn into a group with venues in Canada or Mexico - two countries that do not impose entry bans on Iran.

Many news sites have reported that "FIFA may ban Iran from the World Cup". But this is false information, because FIFA has not yet made any official statement about Iran's situation.

FIFA has been heavily criticized for its ban on Russian football. Many fans are now calling on the world football governing body to do the same with the United States, and even strip the United States of the right to host the World Cup.

At least one Iranian football star has been affected by the war between the two countries. That is striker Mehdi Taremi - who cannot follow Inter Milan to the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup because Iran has completely closed its airspace recently.

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HUY DANG

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/iran-va-kha-nang-du-world-cup-2026-20250623124327235.htm