Mar 11, 2026, 11:07 AM ET
Iran cannot participate in the 2026 World Cup following airstrikes against the country by the United States and Israel, the Iranian sports minister said Wednesday.
"Given that this corrupt government assassinated our leader, under no circumstances can we participate in the World Cup," Ahmad Donyamali reportedly told Iranian state television.
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Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed in the first day of attacks. He has since been succeeded by his son, Mojtaba Khamenei.
Iran was due to play two matches in Los Angeles in June -- against New Zealand and Belgium, respectively -- before facing Egypt in Seattle in their final group stage match.
However, their participation was thrown into doubt after the U.S. and Israel began launching airstrikes on Feb. 28.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino had posted on social media overnight that U.S. President Donald Trump had assured him that Iran would be "welcome" to compete.
Trump said earlier this month he "really didn't care" if Iran played at the World Cup, but Infantino insisted Trump was supportive of the team being involved after a meeting between the two men.
"This evening, I met with the President of the United States, Donald J. Trump to discuss the status of preparations for the upcoming FIFA World Cup, and the growing excitement as we are set to kick off in just 93 days," Infantino posted.
"We also spoke about the current situation in Iran, and the fact that the Iranian team has qualified to participate in the FIFA World Cup 2026. During the discussions, President Trump reiterated that the Iranian team is, of course, welcome to compete in the tournament in the United States.
"We all need an event like the FIFA World Cup to bring people together now more than ever, and I sincerely thank the President of the United States for his support, as it shows once again that Football Unites the World."
However, Iranian officials had already begun to express doubts over whether their team should go to the World Cup.
"What is certain is that after this attack, we cannot be expected to look forward to the World Cup with hope," Iran's top soccer official Mehdi Taj, a vice president of the Asian Football Confederation, said last week.
FIFA's rules around what would happen if Iran were to withdraw are vague, but it is possible that one of Iraq or the UAE might take their place in Group G.
Meanwhile, six members of Iran's delegation have been granted humanitarian visas following the team's exit from the Women's Asian Cup football tournament in Australia.
Five players had initially sought asylum, and Australia's home affairs minister Tony Burke confirmed that a further player and one member of the team's support staff had since also indicated their desire to remain in the country.
He said one of those two individuals later changed their mind and decided to return to Iran.
There have been concerns over the team's safety on their return after the players chose not to sing the national anthem before their first match at the Asian Cup against South Korea.
That drew criticism from supporters of the Iranian regime. The team did sing and salute in their second and third group games.
Trump had called on Australia to grant asylum to the entire Iranian team and said the U.S. would do so if Australia did not.
PA contributed to this report.
