Iran to travel to US day before its first World Cup match
Iran's football federation announced on Tuesday its national team's schedule for the group stage of the World Cup, a tournament that is beginning under difficult circumstances for the Islamic Republic.
While the players obtained the visas necessary to enter the US and play their group-stage matches in Los Angeles and Seattle, not all delegation members received them.
The dispute has erupted just days before the 2026 World Cup kicks off on Thursday. The tournament is being jointly hosted by the US, Mexico and Canada.
"In accordance with FIFA's programme, the team delegation will travel to the United States on a charter flight," the Iranian federation's spokesperson Amir Mehdi Alavi said in a statement carried by ISNA.