Iran have accused the United States of denying visas to crucial members of its national football team's backroom staff, just hours after Washington confirmed that Iranian players had been granted permission to travel for the upcoming World Cup matches.
US officials announced on Friday that visas had been issued to players and "necessary support staff", a mere 10 days before Iran's opening fixture in Los Angeles on 15 June. However, they also stated that Iran would not be allowed to "abuse this system to sneak terrorists into the United States under false pretences".
In response, Iran's embassy in Turkey accused the US of "politically biased interference in sport" by denying further visas. The denied parties reportedly include a large portion of the managerial and executive staff as well as technical advisers. The embassy released a statement describing the US announcement as a "whitewash". It read: "You have now escalated the deliberate and discriminatory treatment against Iran's national football team to its highest level."
Call for FIFA intervention
Iranian embassy officials have called upon FIFA, football's world governing body, for intervention. According to Iranian state-linked media reports, among those denied entry into the US were key figures like head of their football federation and his deputy. The 2026 World Cup is set to begin on 11 June. This event will be jointly hosted by three nations - USA, Canada, and Mexico. Interestingly enough, it will mark history as it will be first time ever where host nation receives a team from a country with which it is at war. Iran secured their place in this prestigious tournament by finishing top of their qualification group back in March 2025 - almost an entire year before conflict broke out between them and the US.
In late May, amidst rising tensions, Iran moved its training base to Mexico from Tucson, Arizona. This move came after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that Iran's football delegation would not be allowed to include individuals linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards - a powerful branch of the Iranian armed forces. Notably, several players in the Iranian squad have completed mandatory military service with this group.
Iran is also scheduled to play against Belgium in California and Egypt in Seattle as part of their other two group games. This ongoing visa issue adds another layer of complexity and tension to an already charged atmosphere surrounding the World Cup. It remains to be seen how these political undercurrents will impact the tournament and whether FIFA will intervene as requested by Iran.
