The Ministry of Sports announced a ban for the “safety” of players before the match between Iranian and Emirati clubs in Saudi Arabia.
Published March 27, 2026
Iran has banned its sports teams from traveling to countries it deems “hostile” ahead of a soccer match scheduled for club team Tractor SC in Saudi Arabia, Iranian state television reported.
Thursday’s ban comes nearly a month after the U.S. and Israeli attack on Iran on Feb. 28 led to war.
Recommended stories
list of 4 itemsend of list
In a statement announcing the ban, Iran’s Sports Ministry named the Asian Champions League’s Tractor Play-Off match against Shabab Al Ahli (Dubai) scheduled to be played in Saudi Arabia next month.
“The presence of national and club teams in countries that are deemed hostile and cannot ensure the safety of Iranian players and team members is prohibited until further notice.”
The ministry added that the football federation and clubs “are responsible for notifying the Asian Football Confederation of this matter in order to relocate the match.”
The statement did not list countries considered hostile.
Tractor’s playoff match in Saudi Arabia came a day after the Asian Football Confederation announced on Wednesday that the West Zone playoffs, which had been postponed due to the conflict, had been rescheduled to April 13-14 in Jeddah following a draw to determine the quarter-final pairings.
The Saudi city will also host the tournament’s quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals from April 16 to 25, with organizers setting the dates in hopes of peace in the region.
Thursday’s statement from Iran’s sports ministry did not mention the World Cup, which Iran has qualified for, to be held in Canada, Mexico and the United States in June and July.
Iran’s ambassador in Mexico City says it is negotiating with FIFA to move Iran’s three group stage matches from the United States to Mexico after US President Donald Trump discouraged Iran from participating in the 48-nation tournament, citing security concerns.
But last week, FIFA president Gianni Infantino further undermined Iran’s attempts to change World Cup matches, saying world soccer’s governing body wanted the tournament to be held “as scheduled.”
Iranian government and soccer officials said they had no intention of boycotting the World Cup, but that the national team’s visit to the United States would be impossible because of Iran’s joint attacks with Israel.
The Iranian national team is currently in Turkiye preparing for international friendlies against Nigeria on Friday and Costa Rica on Tuesday.
