The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be held in the United States, Canada and Mexico, with the December draw to be held in Washington, DC.
Published November 28, 2025
The Iranian Football Federation announced on Friday that Iran will boycott next week’s World Cup final draw in Washington after the United States refused to issue visas to several members of the delegation.
“The decision taken has nothing to do with sport and we have informed FIFA that members of the Iranian delegation will not take part in the World Cup draw,” a federation spokesperson told state television.
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Iranian sports website Varzesh 3 claimed on Tuesday that the United States had denied visas to several members of the delegation, including federation president Mehdi Taj.
Taj on Thursday denounced the decision as political.
“We told FIFA President (Gianni) Infantino that this is a purely political position and that FIFA must tell (the United States) to stop this behavior,” Taj added.
According to Varzes 3 newspaper, four members of the delegation, including coach Amir Galenoei, have been issued visas for the December 5 draw.
Iran won the right to participate in the sport’s tournament, which is held once every four years, in March, securing a spot for the fourth consecutive year and seventh time in total.
Although they had not yet reached the finals, there was boundless joy when Iran defeated the United States 2-1 in the group game in the 1998 French finals.
The United States defeated Iran 1-0 in the 2022 tournament, fulfilling their revenge.
The United States, which co-hosts the World Cup with Canada and Mexico, and Iran have been at odds for more than 40 years.
However, the two countries have been engaged in high-level nuclear talks between Iran and the United States that began in April, during which the two countries were at odds over Iran’s right to enrich uranium, which Tehran says is “non-negotiable.”
But they ended in mid-June when Israel launched an unprecedented bombing campaign against Iran, sparking a 12-day war in which the United States briefly joined and attacked Iran’s main nuclear facilities.
