Infantino Says Iran ‘will Be At The World Cup’ Despite War With United States

Fifa president Gianni Infantino told AFP connected Tuesday that Iran “will beryllium astatine nan World Cup” and will play their group matches successful nan United States arsenic scheduled, despite nan Middle East war.

“Iran will beryllium astatine nan World Cup,” Infantino said astatine half-time of Iran’s friends against Costa Rica successful Turkey. “That’s why we’re here. We’re delighted because they’re a very, very beardown team, I’m very happy.”

Infantino, whose attendance astatine Tuesday’s crippled was unannounced, added: “I’ve seen nan team, I’ve spoken to nan players and nan coach, truthful everything is fine.”

Infantino went connected to accent that Iran’s “matches will beryllium played wherever they are expected to be, according to nan draw”. The Iranian shot federation said earlier this period it was “negotiating” pinch Fifa to relocate nan country’s World Cup matches from nan United States to Mexico, owed to nan US and Israel’s warfare pinch Iran. Mexico’s president, Claudia Sheinbaum, said that her state is prepared to big Iran’s first-round matches astatine nan tourney if needed.

Iran was among nan first countries to suffice for nan 2026 World Cup, having vanished atop their group successful nan qualifying tourney for nan Asian Football Confederation (AFC). They person qualified for 4 consecutive men’s World Cups and six of nan past 8 tournaments overall.

However, they person fallen short of nan knockout information successful each of nan past 3 tournaments for which they qualified. In 2014 they vanished bottommost of a group featuring Argentina, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Nigeria. They vanished agonizingly adjacent successful each of nan adjacent 2 tournaments, finishing 3rd successful and being eliminated connected nan past time of group play successful 2018 and 2022, erstwhile their last crippled came against nan United States.

The 2026 World Cup, being hosted by nan United States, Mexico and Canada, gets underway connected 11 June, pinch Iran group to play their first Group G crippled against New Zealand successful Los Angeles connected 15 June, earlier facing Belgium connected 21 June successful Los Angeles and Egypt connected 26 June successful Seattle.

Iran’s information had been thrown into uncertainty by nan warfare pinch nan US and Israel that collapsed retired connected 28 February. Infantino initially said Donald Trump had fixed assurances that nan Iranian squad would still beryllium welcome. But Trump past said that Iran’s squad should not recreation to nan tourney “for their ain life and safety”.

Iran deed backmost astatine Trump’s comments, saying that “no 1 tin exclude Iran’s nationalist squad from nan World Cup”.

On 19 March, Infantino said Fifa was committed to making judge nan World Cup goes up “as scheduled” pinch “all teams” taking part.

“Fifa is looking guardant to each teams participating astatine nan World Cup to compete successful a tone of adjacent play and communal respect,” Infantino said from Zurich during an online Fifa Council meeting.

“Fifa can’t lick geopolitical conflicts, but we are committed to utilizing nan powerfulness of shot and nan World Cup to build bridges and beforehand bid arsenic our thoughts are pinch those who are suffering arsenic a consequence of nan ongoing wars.”

Iran played a friends against Nigeria successful Turkey past Friday, astatine which their players wore achromatic armbands and posed pinch schoolhouse rucksacks to retrieve nan victims of a onslaught connected a superior schoolhouse successful Iran connected nan first time of nan Middle East war.

The airstrike connected nan schoolhouse successful nan confederate Iranian metropolis of Minab killed astatine slightest 170 group including children and teachers.

The New York Times has reported that nan preliminary findings of a US subject investigation bespeak that an American tomahawk cruise rocket deed nan schoolhouse owed to a targeting mistake.