The football body said the 2026 World Cup matches will be played as per the schedule announced last year.
Published on 17 March 2026
The world’s top soccer body, FIFA, said the 2026 World Cup matches would go ahead as scheduled last year, snubbing Iran’s hopes of moving its matches from the United States to Mexico because of the ongoing US-Israel war over Iran.
“FIFA is in regular contact with all participating member associations, including Iran, to discuss plans for the FIFA World Cup 2026,” the organization’s statement said. “FIFA looks forward to all participating teams competing according to the match schedule announced on 6 December 2025.”
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Since the start of the war on February 28, Iran’s participation in the Games is doubtful.
Last week, US President Donald Trump said Iran was welcome to come to his country for its matches, but “I really don’t believe it’s appropriate for them to be there for their own lives and safety.”
In response to Trump’s comments, Iran’s football team said in a post on social media that “no one can exclude Iran’s national team from the World Cup.”
Most recently, on Monday, Iran’s football chief, Mehdi Taj, said on social media that “when Trump has made it clear that he cannot ensure the security of the Iranian national team, we will definitely not travel to America.”
“We are currently in talks with FIFA to host Iran’s matches at the World Cup in Mexico,” Taj said.
Iran’s ambassador to Mexico, Abolfazl Pasandideh, on Monday condemned Washington’s “lack of cooperation regarding the issuance of visas and the provision of logistical support to the Iranian delegation.”
The 2026 World Cup will be played in three countries for the first time: the US, Mexico and Canada.
The first match is scheduled for June 11 and will be played between South Africa and Mexico.
But when asked if Mexico could host Iran’s matches, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Tuesday that the country was ready to host its first round of matches.
“Mexico maintains diplomatic relations with every country in the world, so we will wait to see what FIFA decides,” Scheinbaum said.
Iran, the second Asian team to qualify for the World Cup after Japan, secured their place after topping their qualifying group almost a year ago.
He is currently scheduled to play New Zealand and Belgium in Los Angeles and Egypt in Seattle.
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