Iran’s soccer chief said the country’s preparations for the World Cup are progressing well, but its participation depends on guarantees of respect for Iran’s military by the tournament’s co-host, the United States.
The Football Federation of Iran (FFIRI) will seek reassurance from FIFA that the United States will not insult the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) during the World Cup, FFIRI President Mehdi Taj said on Tuesday.
“American people, if you guarantee that you will not insult our military institutions and our Revolutionary Guards, we will go,” Taj told state broadcaster IRIB.
“If they give us guarantees and guarantees that an incident like the one in Canada won’t happen, we will go,” he added.
Mr. Taj was referring to an incident that occurred last week. A FFIRI delegation was turned away at Toronto’s main airport due to treatment by Canadian immigration authorities and was absent from a pre-World Cup FIFA meeting in Vancouver.
Despite having valid visas, members of the delegation, including Taj, were turned away shortly after arriving at Toronto’s Pearson Airport, citing “unacceptable behavior by immigration officials.”
“Due to the unacceptable behavior of immigration officials at the airport and the insult to one of the most honorable institutions of the Iranian Armed Forces, they (the delegation) returned to Turkiye on the first available flight,” FFIRI said in a statement after the incident.
In 2024, Canada designated Iran’s Revolutionary Guards as a terrorist organization, and a Canadian government statement indicated that Mr. Taj was denied entry to the country due to his alleged ties to the Revolutionary Guards.
“IRGC personnel are not allowed to enter Canada and have no place in our country,” the Canadian government said in a statement.
The United States and Israel began war against Iran on February 28th.
At least 3,468 people were killed in the U.S. and Israeli attacks, according to Iran’s Health Ministry. More than 26,500 people were injured, including at least 4,000 women and 1,621 children.
Iran’s military retaliated by launching attacks on Middle Eastern countries where U.S. troops are deployed, as well as on Israel.
“Our host is FIFA, not Trump.”
Taj, who spoke in Tehran, is scheduled to meet with FIFA president Gianni Infantino and secretary-general Matthias Grafström at FIFA headquarters in Zurich this month.
During the meeting, Taj said he would seek guarantees that the Iranian team and accompanying officials would not be subjected to entry restrictions or “disrespect,” especially to Iranian state institutions.
“Our visit requires guarantees that they have no right to insult the symbols of our regime, especially the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps,” he said.
“This is something they have to take serious note of. If we have that kind of assurance and responsibility is clearly assumed, then something like what happened in Canada will never happen again.”
The Iranian team is gearing up for the World Cup, with soccer officials outlining the team’s training and preparations for the tournament, including camps at home and in neighboring Turkiye before traveling to the United States.
The team will leave for Turkiye on Monday to make final preparations before heading to the United States in June.
Team Melli will face New Zealand in Los Angeles on June 15th, Belgium at the same stadium on June 21st and Egypt in their final group match in Seattle on June 26th.
Taj claimed that Iran had earned the right to participate in the World Cup as one of the first teams to qualify.
An Iranian official said, “Now that we have qualified, we will participate in the World Cup.” “Our host is FIFA, not Trump or America.”
