New Delhi: Days after Iran’s sports minister, Ahmad Donyamali, said the country would not take part in the FIFA World Cup 2026, the Iran football federation has confirmed it is in ‘negotiations’ with FIFA to move its matches in the tournament from the United States to Mexico. The FIFA World Cup 2026 is set to be co-hosted by the US, Mexico and Canada.
According to the current schedule, Iran, in Group G, are scheduled to play all their matches in the United States. Iranian football federation president Mehdi Taj said on Monday that they are in discussions with FIFA about moving their matches from the US to Mexico due to safety concerns.
Iran’s move comes after US President Donald Trump welcomed the Iranian national football team to participate in the FIFA World Cup 2026 and play their matches in the US. However, Trump insisted it might not be appropriate for the Iranian players to play in the US “for their own life and safety”.
“When (U.S. President Donald) Trump has explicitly stated that he cannot ensure the security of the Iranian national team, we will certainly not travel to America,” Iran football federation chief Taj said in a post shared by the Iranian embassy in Mexico’s X account.
“We are negotiating with FIFA to hold Iran’s World Cup matches in Mexico,” he added.
Last week, Iran’s sports minister Donyamali said the Iranian football team couldn’t take part in the FIFA World Cup 2026 after the US attacked the country in joint strikes alongside Israel. Iran is currently involved in a full-blown war with the US and Israel after facing airstrikes from the two countries in a joint operation earlier this month.
Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, lost his life in the airstrikes from Israel and the US. The conflict has led to tensions in the Middle East region, disrupting peace across multiple Gulf nations, who have been on the receiving end of retaliatory strikes from Iran.
Iran in Group G of FIFA World Cup 2026
Iran qualified for the 2026 FIFA World Cup last year and are in Group G with Belgium, Egypt, and New Zealand. Iran qualified for the World Cup after dominating in the Asian Qualifiers in March last year. As per the current schedule, Iran are scheduled to play two of their group matches in Los Angeles and one in Seattle in the US.