The Iranian government has issued a measure completely banning visits to hostile countries by its national sports teams. The stated reason is to ensure the safety of athletes while it is at war with the United States and Israel.
However, uncertainty is growing over whether Iran's national soccer team can take part in the tournament as normal, as the United States—one of Iran's main hostile countries currently carrying out airstrikes on Iran—is among the co-hosts of the 2026 World Cup in North and Central America being held this year. If Iranian authorities treat the United States as a hostile country and restrict departures, there is concern it could directly lead to missing the World Cup finals.
According to reports by major outlets including Reuters on the 26th (local time), Iran's Sports Ministry issued a statement that day completely blocking national and professional team athletes from traveling to hostile countries. The ministry said, "It is prohibited until further notice for national teams or club teams to stay in countries that are hostile and cannot guarantee the safety of Iranian athletes and delegations."
Accordingly, the Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran sent an official letter to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) requesting that venues for upcoming international matches be changed to neutral countries. Immediately, Tractor FC, an Iranian professional soccer club, now has to play an away match that had been scheduled against a United Arab Emirates (UAE) club in another location such as Saudi Arabia.
The biggest flashpoint is the upcoming 2026 World Cup in North and Central America. Iran has secured a place in the finals, but the group-stage draw assigned all of its matches to be played in the United States. Mehdi Taj, president of the Iranian football federation, said recently that he is in talks with the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) to change Iran's assigned venues from the United States to Mexico.
U.S. President Donald Trump made clear that the U.S. government will not guarantee entry for, or provide special facilitation to, the Iranian delegation in connection with this. In a recent interview with Politico, Trump said, "I really don't care whether Iran participates in the World Cup or not. I think Iran is a very badly beaten country. They are barely hanging on with exhausted strength right now."
As external tensions escalate, the cohesion of Iran's national team is also wavering. The national team is training in Antalya, Türkiye, ahead of friendlies against Nigeria on the 27th and Costa Rica on the 31st. The friendlies, which were originally set to be held in Jordan, were quickly moved to Türkiye right after the outbreak of war. Amid the turmoil, star striker Sardar Azmoun of the Iran men's national soccer team was suddenly expelled from the squad for political reasons.