Iran’s soccer federation is in talks with FIFA about moving its World Cup matches from the United States to Mexico because of concerns over player safety, Iranian soccer president Mehdi Taj said Monday.
Iran’s participation in the world’s most watched sporting event was thrown into doubt after co-host the United States joined Israel in launching airstrikes against the country.
U.S. President Donald Trump said in a Truth Social post last week that Iran is welcome to join the World Cup, but that it might not be appropriate for them to be there “for their own life and safety.”
Safety Concerns
“When Trump has explicitly stated that he cannot ensure the security of the Iranian national team, we will certainly not travel to America,” a quote attributed to Taj said in a post on the Iranian embassy in Mexico’s X account.
“We are negotiating with FIFA to hold Iran’s World Cup matches in Mexico.”
FIFA did not immediately comment.
The game is followed passionately in Iran, a nation of more than 90 million people that has qualified for seven World Cups including the last four. Current FIFA rankings place the team as the second best in Asia, behind only Japan, and as the 20th best in the world.
The Iranian team secured its place in the fourth successive World Cup, finishing top of their group in the third round of Asian qualifying matches last year.
3 Host Nations
The tournament, which takes place every four years, is due to kick off on June 11 in venues across the three host nations of Canada, Mexico, and the United States.
Iran is scheduled to play its group G opponents—Belgium, Egypt, and New Zealand—with two games in Los Angeles and one in Seattle.
Moving Iran’s fixtures to Mexico would mean a significant logistical switch for the tournament, though relocating matches for security or geopolitical reasons is not without precedent.
Last September, Scotland won a World Cup qualifying match against Belarus at Zalaegerszeg near the Austrian-Slovenian border after the UEFA ruled the match should not take place in Belarus due to the country’s role as a staging ground in Russia’s war with Ukraine.
Tense political relations between India and Pakistan means the neighboring countries only play each other at neutral venues in multi-team cricket tournaments.
After India refused to travel to Pakistan for last year’s Champions Trophy, they were allowed to play all their matches in Dubai instead.
Iran’s sports minister, Ahmad Donyamali, said last week it would not be possible for the Iranian team to participate in the tournament “due to the wicked acts they have done against Iran.”
World War II Hiatus
No country has ever withdrawn from the World Cup tournament since before World War II, which caused a 12-year hiatus in the event from 1938 to 1950.
The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) said Monday that it had not been told of Iranian plans to withdraw from the event.
“At the end of the day, it’s the federation who should decide if they’re playing, and as of today, the federation has told us that they are going to the World Cup,” AFC General Secretary Windsor John told reporters in Kuala Lumpur.
Following Trump’s post, the Iranian national team said on Instagram that “no one can exclude” it from the tournament, and a government spokesman in Tehran stressed it was the responsibility of FIFA and the United States as a co-host nation to keep players safe and secure.
This year’s World Cup sees the return of the tournament to North America after 32 years and is the first to be hosted by three countries. The event has been expanded to include a record number of 48 teams in the the final stages, following three years of qualifying matches.
The end phase of the tournament will shift entirely to the United States starting with the quarter-final round, with matches taking place in Los Angeles, Kansas City, Miami, and Boston. The final will be held in New Jersey at the stadium of the National Football League’s New York Giants and New York Jets.
Soccer ‘Unites the World’
Mexico will become the first nation to host the tournament three times after previously staging the event in 1970 and 1986.
The last World Cup took place in the Middle East, hosted by Qatar in 2022, where Argentina emerged as the winner against France in a final watched by an estimated 1.5 billion people.
The event was last hosted by the United States in 1994, when Brazil clinched the prestigious trophy with a win over Italy.
FIFA has not commented on the possibility of Iran playing its matches in Mexico. An Instagram post by president Gianni Infantino said last week that he’d received assurances from Trump that Iran was welcome at the tournament.
“We all need an event like the FIFA World Cup to bring people together now more than ever, and I sincerely thank the President of the United States for his support, as it shows once again that Football Unites the World,” Infantino said.
Reuters and the Associated Press contributed to this article.
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