FIFA President Gianni Infantino said on Wednesday that Iran will “certainly” take part in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, despite questions raised over the country’s participation amid tensions with the United States.
Speaking at CNBC’s Invest in America Forum, Infantino stressed that Iran has qualified for the tournament and should be allowed to compete.
FIFA stance on Iran’s participation
“The Iranian team will certainly come, yes,” Infantino said. “We hope that by then, of course, the situation will be peaceful. As I said, that would certainly help. But Iran must come. It represents its people. It has qualified. The players want to compete.”
Iran’s participation had come under scrutiny following US and Israeli air strikes, which raised questions about security conditions ahead of the tournament.
Trump’s mixed signals
Former US President Donald Trump has given mixed signals on whether Iran should take part in the World Cup, which the United States will co-host with Mexico and Canada.
During a meeting at the White House in mid-March, Trump told FIFA representatives that Iran would be welcome at the tournament. However, two days later he wrote on Truth Social that although the Iranian team is “welcome”, he does not consider it “appropriate for them to be there, for life and safety reasons”.
Discussions on match venues
Following those comments, the president of the Iranian Football Federation, Mehdi Taj, said the country was in discussions with FIFA about holding Iran’s matches in Mexico.
“When President Trump explicitly said he cannot guarantee the safety of Iran’s national team, we certainly will not travel to America,” Taj said last month.
Iran is currently scheduled to play all three of its group-stage matches in the United States, with two at SoFi Stadium near Los Angeles and one in Seattle.