May 20, Iran Confirmed to Appear in the 2026 World Cup

ZURICH, SUNDAY — Although there has been a guarantee from FIFA President Gianni Infantino that Iran will participate in the 2026 World Cup, the participation of "Team Melli" remains uncertain. Iran's certainty in heading to the United States will be determined after a meeting between the Iranian Football Federation (FFIRI) and FIFA officials at FIFA's headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland, on May 20.

The assurance from Infantino, followed by the green light from U.S. President Donald Trump allowing the Iranian squad to participate in the 23rd edition of the World Cup starting on June 11, has yet to provide tranquility for Iran.

The symptoms were described by the General Chairman of FFIRI, Mehdi Taj, who recounted that he and two other senior officials were detained for nearly two hours at the immigration of Toronto Pearson International Airport, Canada, when they were about to attend the FIFA Congress in Vancouver on Thursday (30/4/2026).

As a result of the detention, Taj chose not to continue the journey from Toronto to Vancouver. The FFIRI delegation had actually been granted entry into Canada, but they opted to return to Istanbul, Turkey, which serves as Iran's preparation center for the 2026 World Cup.

"They (Canadian immigration officers) asked me if I had any ties to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). I said that 90 million citizens are members of the IRGC, without exception," Taj told the Iranian media outlet Tasnim.

Taj, who is also the Vice President of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), revealed that they have received an invitation letter from FIFA Secretary General Mattias Grafstrom to hold a meeting on May 20 in Zurich.

"We have many issues to discuss. We will convey our position during the meeting with FIFA," Taj said.

Iran and Japan are the two earliest teams to secure their spots in the 2026 World Cup through the qualification route in March 2025. However, Iran's participation seems to be sidelined as it was absent from three FIFA agendas related to the 2026 World Cup.

First, Taj along with several FFIRI delegates did not receive US visas to attend the draw for the qualifying round of the 2026 World Cup in Washington DC on December 5, 2025. The event was attended by President Trump.

Secondly, Taj was also not invited by FIFA to the pre-World Cup meeting in Miami last February. The meeting discussed various technical aspects regarding competition rules, game regulations, and discussions supporting the tournament.

The situation in Iran is becoming increasingly complex as FFIRI is also the only one among the 211 FIFA members that did not have a delegation at the FIFA Congress 2026. Meanwhile, Infantino assured Iran's participation in the 2026 World Cup during the opening speech of that annual FIFA agenda.

"The reason for Iran's participation is very simple, everyone, because we must unite everyone. We must bring everyone together. This is my responsibility. This is our responsibility at FIFA to unite the world," said Infantino.

Trump has also given the green light to Iran to participate in the 2026 World Cup. According to Trump, the decision is based on the close friendship between himself and Infantino.

"If Infantino said that, I'm okay," Trump stated when asked by several reporters at the White House, Washington DC, USA, on Friday (1/5/2026) local time or Saturday (2/5/2026) WIB.

The meeting with FIFA is approximately 19 days away from the planned arrival of the Iranian squad in the United States to compete in the 2026 World Cup. Iran is scheduled to arrive in the United States no later than June 8, or one week before their first match against New Zealand at SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, Los Angeles, on June 15 local time.

Team Melli is scheduled to stay at the Grand Resort and Spa Westward Look Wyndham, Tucson, Arizona. The Iranian squad will train at the Kino Sports Complex, which is also located in the Tucson area.

Two matches involving Iran will take place in Inglewood. After facing New Zealand, they will challenge Belgium. In the final game of Group G, they will compete against Egypt at Lumen Field Stadium, Seattle, Washington.

Interestingly, if Amir Ghalenoei's team is able to qualify from the group stage as runners-up in Group G, then they have the opportunity to directly face the US in the round of 32. The "hot" battle could be created if the US also qualifies for the knockout phase as second place in Group D. The match will be presented at AT&T Stadium, Arlington, on July 4 WIB.

Previously, Iran and the United States have met twice in the World Cup. Iran won 2-1 in France 1998, then the United States responded with a 1-0 victory in Qatar 2022. Both matches took place in the group stage.

In the history of the World Cup, which has spanned from the Second World War to the Cold War era, there has never been a contestant that withdrew after securing qualification. The United States is also recorded as the first World Cup host to conduct a military attack on a World Cup participant. (AP/REUTERS)