2026 World Cup: Fifa welcomes “constructive” meeting with Iran

Iran’s presence at the World Cup is on track. The Secretary General of Fifa, Mattias Grafström, judged the meeting organized on Saturday May 16 in Istanbul (Turkey) with the Iranian football federation to guarantee Iran’s participation in the World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico as “very constructive”.

“Our meeting with the Iranian Football Federation was very constructive. We work closely together and look forward to welcoming the Islamic Republic of Iran to the World Cup,” the FIFA representative said in a statement.

“We were able to address some operational issues, as we do with every member association. I am very happy with the richness of our exchanges. Ultimately, both the Iranian Football Federation and FIFA are very satisfied with this meeting and look forward to welcoming Team Melli to Canada, the United States and Mexico,” he added.

Still no visas for Iranian players

The president of the Iranian Football Federation, Mehdi Taj, said Thursday that no visa had yet been issued to Team Melli. The procedure is supposed to be finalized in Türkiye.

Regarding the meeting with Fifa on Saturday, Mr. Taj also described it as “positive and constructive”. “Each party was able to express its concerns while reaffirming a common commitment to guaranteeing the participation of Team Melli in the World Cup,” he said, according to the Fifa press release.

This meeting, organized at the headquarters of the Turkish Football Federation (TFF), comes as the Iranian national team will leave Monday morning for a preparation course in Turkey before joining the United States, in the middle of the conflict between Tehran and Washington.

Iran hopes to play two friendly matches in Antalya, although only a match against Gambia on May 29 has been confirmed so far, according to Sam Mehdizadeh, an Iranian-Canadian match agent at the head of a company organizing friendly matches involving the Iranian selection.

Qualified for its fourth consecutive final tournament, Iran will establish its base camp in Tucson, Arizona. In group G, the national team will begin its journey on June 15 in Los Angeles against New Zealand, before challenging Belgium on June 21, then concluding its group stage against Egypt on June 26 in Seattle.