The Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran (FFIRI) on Tuesday announced that their team will fly to Los Angeles the day before their opening match of the FIFA World Cup 2026 against New Zealand.
The Iranian team will be based in Tijuana, Mexico, throughout the tournament, despite playing their first three round matches in the United States.
Iran will open their campaign against New Zealand in Los Angeles on Monday, before facing Belgium in the same city on June 21 and Egypt in Seattle on June 26.
Their involvement has been overshadowed by the military conflict between Iran and the United States.
While the players obtained the visas necessary to enter the United States of America (USA), 15 members of their support team in management and administrative roles did not receive them.
The visa dispute erupted just days before the World Cup kicks off on Thursday. The tournament is being jointly hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada.
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“In accordance with FIFA’s programme, the team delegation will travel to the United States on a charter flight,” the Iranian federation’s spokesperson Amir Mehdi Alavi said in a statement carried by Iran’s ISNA news agency.
“The team will travel to the host city one day before the match against New Zealand, and for the following two matches, we will be at the host venue two days before the game,” he added.
Iran’s Sports Minister Ahmad Donyamali separately warned against the display of certain symbols during matches.
“If, in the stadiums where we play, we see any flag or symbol other than that of the Islamic Republic of Iran, or if norm-breaking slogans are chanted, the team official will certainly have a duty to stop the match,” he was quoted by Iran’s official IRNA news agency as saying.
“It is the responsibility of the organisers to rectify the situation,” he added.
FIFA rules prohibit political symbols at World Cup matches.
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