A diplomatic war of words has broken out over the US visa status for several members of Iran’s 2026 World Cup delegation with just days to go until the start of the tournament, and on the day the team itself departed to Mexico to open its camp ahead of the competition.
Iran have trained and played closed-door matches over the last three weeks in Antalya, Turkey, while diplomats have worked to secure visas for their entry to the United States, where the team will play all three of their group-stage games. Those visas were approved on 5 June for Iran’s players and some staff, but Iranian state media and diplomats reported that same day that several of the team’s support staff have been left out including the Iranian football federation chief Mehdi Taj.
