Iran ‘cannot participate’ in the World Cup, sports minister says

Iran’s sports minister on Wednesday raised the possibility that the country’s national men’s soccer team withdraws from the upcoming World Cup after the U.S. and Israel started a war with his country and its Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in airstrikes.

The U.S. is co-hosting the quadrennial soccer tournament along with Canada and Mexico from June 11 to July 19.

Iran is scheduled to play in Los Angeles on June 15 against New Zealand and on June 21 against Belgium before traveling to Seattle for a June 26 matchup against Egypt.

“Given that this government has assassinated our leader, we cannot participate in the World Cup. Our players do not have security,” Iranian sports minister Ahmad Donyamali said, via the news agency Mehr News. “Certainly, we do not have the possibility of such participation.”

The U.S. and Israel launched strikes on Feb. 28 that killed Khamenei. Two days later, Mehdi Taj, the president of Iran’s soccer federation, told The Associated Press that “what is certain is that after this attack, we cannot be expected to look forward to the World Cup with hope.”

Earlier this month, when Politico asked President Donald Trump about Iran’s participation in the World Cup, he said, “I really don’t care.”

How FIFA, soccer’s global governing body, would handle Iran’s withdrawal is unclear because its regulations covering the 2026 World Cup offer broad powers but few specifics.

According to those regulations, “if any Participating Member Association withdraws and/or is excluded from the FIFA World Cup 26, FIFA shall decide on the matter at its sole discretion and take whatever action is deemed necessary. FIFA may decide to replace the Participating Member Association in question with another association.”

A country that withdraws up to 30 days before the tournament can be fined “at least 250,000” in Swiss currency, per the regulations.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino, who awarded Trump the “FIFA Peace Prize” on Dec. 5, before the tournament’s groups were unveiled, said in an Instagram post early Wednesday morning that he met Tuesday night with Trump to discuss World Cup plans, and that the conversation had included Iran’s participation.

“During the discussions, President Trump reiterated that the Iranian team is, of course, welcome to compete in the tournament in the United States,” Infantino said. “We all need an event like the FIFA World Cup to bring people together now more than ever.”

The war in Iran has also affected the country’s women’s soccer team. The national team was playing the Asian Cup tournament in Australia when the war began. When the team left Sydney late Tuesday, seven players had elected to stay after accepting humanitarian visas offered by Australia. One woman later changed her mind, according to the AP.

More than 1,200 people have been killed in Iran by the strikes from the U.S. and Israel, according to the Iranian Red Crescent Society, while 570 have been killed in Lebanon, according to its prime minister’s office. In Israel, retaliatory strikes by Iran have killed 13 people.