The 2026 World Cup matches will be played as per the schedule announced last year, the soccer body said.
Published March 17, 2026
FIFA, the world’s top soccer organization, has announced that the 2026 World Cup matches will be held as per the schedule announced last year, ending Iran’s hopes of moving the matches from the United States to Mexico because of the ongoing war against Iran between the United States and Israel.
“FIFA is in regular contact with all participating member associations, including Iran, to discuss plans for the 2026 FIFA World Cup,” the organization’s statement said. “FIFA looks forward to seeing all participating teams compete in accordance with the announced match schedule on December 6, 2025.”
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Iran’s participation in the Olympics has been called into question since the war broke out on February 28th.
US President Donald Trump said last week that he welcomed Iran to his country for the games, but added: “For their own lives and safety, I don’t really think it’s appropriate for them to be there.”
In response to President Trump’s remarks, the Iranian soccer team said in a social media post: “No one can exclude the Iranian national team from the World Cup.”
More recently, on Monday, Iran’s head of soccer, Mehdi Taj, said on social media: “If President Trump makes it clear that he cannot guarantee the safety of the Iranian national team, we will definitely not go to the United States.”
“We are currently negotiating with FIFA to host Iran’s matches at the Mexico World Cup,” Taj said.
Iran’s ambassador to Mexico, Abolfazl Pasandide, also on Monday criticized Washington’s “lack of cooperation regarding visa issuance and logistics provisions” for the Iranian delegation.
The 2026 World Cup will be held for the first time in history in three countries: the United States, Mexico, and Canada.
The first match is scheduled for June 11th and will be between South Africa and Mexico.
However, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Tuesday that Mexico was ready to host the first round matches when asked if Mexico could host the Iran match.
“Mexico maintains diplomatic relations with every country in the world, so we will wait for FIFA’s decision,” Sheinbaum said.
Iran is the second team from Asia to qualify for the World Cup after Japan, having made it through their qualifying group almost a year ago.
They are currently scheduled to play New Zealand and Belgium in Los Angeles, and Egypt in Seattle.
