Iran has confirmed its intention to participate in this summer’s football World Cup, but has called for a set of guarantees from Fifa and the host nations amid rising tensions over its involvement. 
The Iranian Football Federation (FFIRI) stated that the team will compete in the tournament “without any retreat from our beliefs, culture and convictions,” while stressing that the hosts “must take our concerns into account.” These demands follow FFIRI President Mehdi Taj being denied entry to Canada prior to last month’s Fifa Congress.
Taj revealed that Iran had submitted 10 conditions to Fifa for its World Cup participation, which begins on 11 June in the United States, Mexico, and Canada. Among the demands outlined in a statement on Saturday are guarantees that all players, coaches, and officials traveling with the team will receive visas, including those who completed military service with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The IRGC is designated as a terrorist organization in both Canada and the United States, and Taj’s links to it were cited as the reason for his denied entry into Canada.
Iran is also seeking assurances regarding the treatment of the national team, including respect for the Iranian flag and national anthem, as well as enhanced security at airports, hotels, and stadiums during the tournament. Some of these requests may be easier for Fifa to influence than others. Fifa can oversee tournament logistics, official protocols, and the treatment of participating delegations during the event. However, issues related to visas, border controls, and security vetting ultimately fall under US jurisdiction rather than Fifa’s regulations.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has already stated that Iranian footballers would be welcome at the tournament, while warning that individuals with links to the IRGC could still face restrictions on entering the United States. This places Fifa in a delicate balancing act, ensuring the participation of all qualified teams while navigating the political realities surrounding Tehran-Washington relations.
Israel and the US launched wide-ranging strikes on Iran on 28 February, with Iran responding by attacking Israel and US-allied Gulf states. Fighting has since largely been suspended under a fragile ceasefire. Some of the Iranian federation’s other requests may also prove difficult to enforce in practice. Iranian officials have reportedly asked for journalists to avoid questions beyond “technical football matters,” but the boundary between football and politics is often blurred in Iran’s case.
Questions about squad selection, public support for the national team, or the atmosphere surrounding matches can carry both sporting and political dimensions simultaneously. This was evident at the women’s Asian Cup in Australia in March when several Iranian players tried to claim asylum, sparking a tense diplomatic stand-off. Seven team members were granted humanitarian visas while in Australia, but five changed their minds and returned home.
Iranian men’s coach Amir Ghalenoei recently acknowledged that politically charged atmospheres could surround some matches involving Iran at the World Cup. Despite the tensions, there is no indication that Iran intends to withdraw from the tournament. Instead, the latest developments indicate increasingly complex negotiations between Fifa, Tehran, and US authorities regarding the conditions for Iran’s participation at the largest World Cup in history.