The flag of Iran is displayed on a screen during the draw for the 2026 FIFA World Cup between the US, Canada and Mexico at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC on December 5, 2025. Iran’s sports minister has said the team will now not play in this summer’s tournament because of the US attack on Iran.
Roberto Smith/AFP via Getty Images
Hide caption
Toggle title
Roberto Smith/AFP via Getty Images
Iran cannot participate in this summer’s FIFA World Cup, which is co-hosted by the United States, Iran’s sports minister said Wednesday.
“This corrupt government has assassinated our leader and created severe insecurity, we cannot participate in the World Cup,” Ahmad Donyamali said in remarks broadcast on Iranian state television. “There is no safety for the players, and the conditions for participation do not exist.”
The military operation by the US along with its ally Israel began in late February. Feb. An Israeli strike on the 28th, enabled in part by American intelligence, killed the country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and other high-ranking officials. At least 1,300 Iranian civilians were killed, according to Amir Saeed Irawani, the country’s ambassador to the United Nations.
The new campaign follows the 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran last year. It resulted in the deaths of more than 1,000 Iranians, according to the Iranian government.
“In just eight or nine months, they have dragged us into two wars, killed thousands of our people and committed heinous atrocities,” Donyamali said. “In these conditions, it is impossible to attend the tournament.”
The World Cup is set to run from June 11 to July 19, with the US one of three co-hosts of the tournament, along with Canada and Mexico. Most of the games will be played in the US, including all three of Iran’s group stage matches in Los Angeles and Seattle.
It was not immediately clear whether Iran had formally withdrawn from the tournament. FIFA and the Iran Football Federation did not immediately respond to NPR’s inquiries.
After FIFA President Gianni Infantino met with President Trump on Tuesday, Infantino said in a statement that Trump “reaffirmed that the Iranian team is welcome to compete in the tournament in the United States.”
A team withdrawing from a team before the start of the World Cup is unprecedented in the modern era.
Under FIFA rules, a team that withdraws from the tournament faces fines of hundreds of thousands of dollars and a possible ban from future competition.
FIFA will have broad discretion to replace Iran in the tournament with another team from the Asian Football Confederation, such as Iraq or the United Arab Emirates, as an alternate.
