December 1 – Iran says it will boycott next week’s World Cup 2026 draw in Washington, D.C. after the United States government denied visas to members of its delegation, according to state media.
Iranian football federation spokesman Amir-Mahdi Alavi said the obstacles went “beyond sports”, and the federation had written to asked FIFA to step in. The White House has not commented, and FIFA hasn’t responded publicly.
The Iranian FA said it had written to FIFA and for help to resolve the issue but none had been forthcoming.
US president Donald Trump’s administration announced in June a travel ban on citizens from 12 countries including Iran and Haiti, which has also qualified for the World Cup. It has given FIFA President Gianni Infantino an unwanted headache should Iran or Haiti be drawn in groups located in the U.S.
Exemptions were promised for “any athlete or member of an athletic team, including coaches, persons performing a necessary support role, and immediate relatives, traveling for the World Cup, Olympics, or other major sporting event as determined by the secretary of state.”
The draw was not specifically mentioned as an exemption.
The draw had originally been planned to be held in Las Vegas as an entertainment spectacular before Trump had it moved to Washington D.C. and to the Kennedy Centre this Friday (December 5).
It’s a tense backdrop for two countries with a complicated World Cup history. When the U.S. and Iran met at the 1998 World Cup in France, players from both sides walked on to the pitch carrying white roses, a gesture meant to soften political tension and show respect as the match had been billed as ‘The Mother of All Games’. It became one of the most memorable moments in tournament history as Iran won 2-1.
They met again during Qatar 2022, with the Americans victorious.
Iran’s federation president Mehdi Taj, is a senior figure in Asian football and a member of multiple FIFA committees. His expected absence will surely have ramifications in the boardrooms of FIFA.
And beyond officials, there’s a bigger elephant in the room, namely, Iranian and Haitian fans. If the current visa rules remain this strict, they will have very little chance of supporting their teams in the United States?
Infantino has repeatedly said that this World Cup is open to everyone, but that just isn’t the case. If supporters from qualifying nations can’t travel because of political barriers, ‘open to everyone’ will have to come with a question mark over what FIFA’s definition of ‘open’ and ‘everyone’ has become.
FIFA removed Indonesia from holding its U23 World Cup over opposition to hosting the Israeli team. The USA is refusing to similarly host members of Iran’s official delegation and there will likely be more issues. For FIFA, which is repeatedly showing that its word cannot be taken as its bond since Infantino became president, where does it go from here and has its operation in the US ultimately become just a money grab from the Concacaf region and a PR opportunity for the Trump administration?
The new FIFA Peace prize – which everyone is expecting to be awarded to Donald Trump in the city where he has put the nation’s military on the streets – is turning the whole draw and the world governing body, into a figure of global ridicule.
Contact the writers of this story at moc.l1764550765labto1764550765ofdlr1764550765owedi1764550765sni@r1764550765etsbe1764550765w.kci1764550765n1764550765 or moc.l1764550765labto1764550765ofdlr1764550765owedi1764550765sni@n1764550765osloh1764550765cin.l1764550765uap1764550765
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