Iran to ‘boycott’ World Cup in US but will not withdraw from 2026 event
Al Jazeera
Iran are scheduled to play their three FIFA World Cup 2026 group games in the United States, but Mexico is an alternative.
The Iranian national team are continuing to prepare for the FIFA World Cup 2026 finals and have no intention of pulling out of the tournament but do intend to “boycott” matches in United States, football chief Mehdi Taj has insisted.
Iran were one of the first nations to qualify for the finals but their participation has been in doubt since the conflict between the Islamic republic and the United States began in late February.
The tournament runs from June 11 to July 19 and is being co-hosted by the US, Mexico and Canada.
Team Melli are scheduled to play all three of their opening-round group matches in the US, but Taj said on Monday the Iranian FA (FFIRI) was negotiating with FIFA to have them moved to Mexico.
Iran will play Nigeria on March 27 and Costa Rica four days later in Antalya as part of a four-nation invitational tournament that had to be moved from Jordan because of the conflict in the Middle East.
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