FIFA President Gianni Infantino confirmed Thursday that Iran will play its World Cup matches in the United States, drawing immediate approval from President Donald Trump. “If Gianni said it, I’m OK,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. The exchange at the 76th FIFA Congress in Vancouver removes a major diplomatic obstacle for the June tournament.
Infantino made the declaration at the start of his address to delegates. “Let me start by the outset, confirming straightaway that of course Iran will be participating at the FIFA World Cup 2026,” he said. “And of course, Iran will play in the United States of America.”
The room in Vancouver fell silent for a beat. Then the business of football’s governing body resumed. Hours later, in Washington, a reporter asked Trump about the guarantee. The president leaned back. “You know what? Let them play.”
The comments cap a turbulent period for tournament organizers. Iran’s participation had been shrouded in doubt since February, when the US-Israel military campaign against Iran began. Iranian officials had floated moving their group-stage games from American soil to Mexico.
Infantino rejected that proposal outright. What this actually means for your family: the World Cup schedule holds. For the 48 teams, the thousands of support staff, and the millions of fans holding tickets, the tournament proceeds as planned.
No last-minute venue scrambles. No diplomatic standoffs at the turnstiles. The policy says one thing.
The reality says another. Iran is drawn in Group G. They face New Zealand on June 15 in Los Angeles, then Belgium, then Egypt.
Their team base is Tucson, Arizona. Three group-stage matches. Two of them on American soil.
Tensions did not stay in the conference hall. Iran’s delegation was the only one missing from the 211-member congress when it opened Thursday. The reason was a confrontation at the Canadian border.
Officials from the Iranian football federation, known as FFIRI, landed in Toronto earlier this week. They planned to travel onward to Vancouver. They never made it.
Iranian media reported that FFIRI President Mehdi Taj and two colleagues flew home after being, in their words, “insulted” by Canadian immigration officers. Taj is no ordinary sports administrator. He is a former member of Tehran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Canada designated the IRGC a terrorist organization in 2024. On Wednesday, Canadian officials stated that individuals linked to the force were “inadmissible.”
The border incident adds a layer of diplomatic friction. Canada is a World Cup co-host. Its immigration laws now directly affect who can attend FIFA’s own congress.
The Iranian federation issued a statement calling the treatment “unacceptable.” FIFA has not commented on the border episode. Behind the diplomatic language lies a simple calculation. Sponsors, broadcasters, and host governments have invested years and fortunes.
Removing a qualified team weeks before kickoff would trigger legal chaos. Infantino knows this. Trump, a businessman before he was president, knows it too.
Both sides claim victory. Here are the numbers. FIFA’s statutes require political neutrality.
Member associations must be free from government interference. Iran qualified on the pitch. Barring them for geopolitical reasons would violate the organization’s own rules and invite appeals to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
The legal exposure was real. For the Trump administration, the calculus is different. Allowing Iranian players and officials into the country requires visa approvals.
Some of those officials may have ties to the IRGC. The State Department will now have to process those applications under standard protocols, even as the US remains in a state of armed conflict with Iran. The security implications are not abstract.
Tucson is home to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base. Los Angeles is a major port and potential target. The Department of Homeland Security will coordinate with local law enforcement on protection details for the Iranian delegation.
Those details are being finalized now, according to a federal security official who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss operational planning. Iranian fans will also travel. The US granted 12,000 visas to Iranian nationals during the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, when no direct military conflict existed.
This year, the vetting process will be far more intensive. Wait times could stretch. Consular offices in third countries will handle the bulk of applications, since the US has no diplomatic presence in Tehran.
The human element cuts through the policy noise. Mehdi Taremi, Iran’s star striker who plays for Inter Milan, told Italian media last month that his teammates were training “in a bubble.” They follow tactical drills while their phones buzz with news from home. For their families, it is a respite from war headlines.
Iran’s opening match against New Zealand will be played at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood. The 70,000-seat venue has hosted Super Bowls and Olympic ceremonies. On June 15, it will host a team from a nation the US is bombing.
The juxtaposition is jarring. FIFA’s rules make it possible. Historical context matters here.
This is not the first time geopolitics has threatened a World Cup. The US and Iran played each other in the 1998 tournament in France. That match, won 2-1 by Iran, came during a period of détente.
Players exchanged flowers before kickoff. The image became iconic. In 2022, Iran’s team refused to sing the national anthem before their opening match in Qatar, a gesture of solidarity with anti-government protesters back home.
Football and Iranian politics are inseparable. The current squad will face questions about the war, about their government, about playing in a country whose military is striking Iranian targets. FIFA’s disciplinary code prohibits political demonstrations on the field.
The code will be tested. Why It Matters:
The decision preserves the integrity of the World Cup format. Every qualified team plays. No government veto overrides sporting qualification.
For the 3.5 billion people who watch the tournament globally, the product remains whole. For the US, it means hosting a team from an adversary nation during active hostilities — a precedent with implications for future mega-events, from the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics to the 2034 Saudi World Cup. - The Iranian football federation president, a former IRGC member, was turned away at the Canadian border, highlighting the legal and security complexities of hosting officials from a designated terrorist organization. - The US State Department must now process visas for Iranian players, staff, and fans under heightened security protocols while military operations against Iran continue. - The tournament’s $11 billion economic engine and FIFA’s neutrality rules made excluding Iran legally and financially untenable, overriding political objections. The next milestone is visa processing.
The State Department has not issued a timeline. Iranian fans will need to apply through US embassies in Turkey, the UAE, or Armenia. Delays are expected.
The first Iranian team advance staff are due in Tucson by late May to set up training facilities. Watch for the security plan. DHS will release a threat assessment for Group G venues in the coming weeks.
Local police in Los Angeles and Tucson will coordinate with federal agents. The Iranian team bus routes, hotel locations, and practice schedules will be closely guarded. Politics will not stop the match.
But it will shape every moment around it.
Key Takeaways
— - Iran will play all three group-stage matches as scheduled, including two in the United States, after FIFA President Gianni Infantino gave an unconditional guarantee and President Trump endorsed it.
— - The Iranian football federation president, a former IRGC member, was turned away at the Canadian border, highlighting the legal and security complexities of hosting officials from a designated terrorist organization.
— - The US State Department must now process visas for Iranian players, staff, and fans under heightened security protocols while military operations against Iran continue.
— - The tournament's $11 billion economic engine and FIFA's neutrality rules made excluding Iran legally and financially untenable, overriding political objections.
Source: Al Jazeera
