Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
Coach of the Iranian national team. They did us wrong in the World Cup
Iran’s football federation has announced that it intends to file a formal complaint with the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) in protest against the “restrictions” that have been applied to the team’s delegation for the 2026 World Cup, arguing that it has a negative impact on the team’s preparation and violates the principle of equal opportunities between teams.
The escalation comes ahead of Iran’s upcoming clash with Belgium, scheduled for Sunday at the SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, in the second round of the group stage.
Iran’s national team opened their Group G campaign last Tuesday morning with a 2-2 draw with their New Zealand counterpart, knowing they will face Egypt at the end of their campaign in the group stage next Saturday morning.
Continued objections
The Iranian team has expressed its displeasure since the start of the tournament, particularly after US authorities refused to grant entry visas to a number of members of the mission before the crisis flared over the team’s travel and transportation.
According to an Iranian national team official, the team was only allowed to arrive in Los Angeles a day before the opening game against New Zealand, which ended in a 2-2 draw, and had to leave the city immediately after the game and return to its base camp in Tijuana, Mexico.
The official clarified, according to the newspaper.L’EquipeThe French newspaper states that these measures “contrary to the principle of equality in the preparation conditions of all participating teams”, which indicates that they can affect the technical and physical training of the players.
Iran’s federation has confirmed it will take formal steps to lodge its complaint with FIFA, expressing its disapproval of restrictions placed on team movements during the tournament.
Read also:
Harsh sanctions await… What will happen if Iran withdraws from the World Cup?
It comes after strong comments from technical director Amir Kala Noi after the clash with New Zealand, when he described his country as “the most unfairly exposed of all the teams at the World Cup”.
After months of uncertainty over the situation in the Middle East, Iran qualified for the tournament but had to move its base camp to the Mexican city of Tijuana instead of the United States.
According to the plan prepared by the technical staff, the team had to arrive in the host cities two days before each match, and the next day, in order to ensure the best conditions for preparation and recovery.
However, Iranian officials confirmed that this plan did not go ahead, as the team was only allowed to arrive in Los Angeles on the eve of the match before being forced to leave shortly after the final whistle.
Iran said it had asked the team to be allowed to arrive in Los Angeles starting Friday, two days before the match against Belgium, to acclimatize and better prepare for the game on Sunday afternoon local time.
But the request was rejected, according to Iran’s statement, prompting the federation to file a formal complaint against FIFA in a fresh escalation of the crisis that has dogged Team Melli since the tournament began.
