Iran says it will boycott this week’s FIFA World Cup draw after the United States denied visas to several senior members of its delegation.
According to the state-run IRNA agency, multiple Iranian soccer officials were blocked from entering the U.S., including federation president Mehdi Taj, one of the most influential figures in Asian football and a member of two FIFA committees overseeing World Cup operations. Iran has contacted FIFA hoping for assistance, but soccer’s governing body has not responded publicly.
In June, the Trump administration rolled out a travel ban on citizens from 12 nations, among them Iran and newly qualified World Cup contender Haiti. At the time, the White House argued the ban was needed to “protect Americans from foreign terrorists and other national security and public-safety threats,” saying that citizens of Iran and other listed countries pose a high risk due to insufficient vetting, visa-overstay rates and a history of poor cooperation on deportations.
However, exemptions were made 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.” It remains unclear whether exemptions in President Trump’s executive order apply to the Final Draw scheduled for Friday at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.
Iran qualified for the World Cup in March after a 2–2 draw with Uzbekistan, marking the seventh time the country has qualified for the tournament. Despite decades of dominance in Asian competition, Iran has never advanced past the group stage. Their closest attempt came in 2018, when they finished with four points and narrowly missed advancing after a late chance against Portugal went wide.
This year’s World Cup will be the biggest in the sport’s history, with 48 teams and 104 matches spread across 16 host cities in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. The opener will be played at Mexico City’s Estadio Azteca, and the champion will be crowned at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on July 19.
Media Credit: Instagram/TeamMelli
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