FIFA President Gianni Infantino has confirmed that Iran will participate in the 2026 FIFA World Cup and will play its group-stage matches on United States soil, ending months of uncertainty over the country's involvement in the tournament. "Of course, Iran will be participating at the FIFA World Cup 2026. And of course Iran will play in the United States of America," Infantino declared at the FIFA Congress in Vancouver. US President Donald Trump endorsed the decision, saying simply, "let them play."
The announcement came against a backdrop of acute diplomatic tension. Iran's football federation delegation — including federation president Mehdi Taj, secretary general Hedayat Mombeini, and deputy secretary general Hamed Momeni — had flown to Toronto to attend the FIFA Congress before being turned back by Canadian border authorities, who revoked their entry permits despite the officials holding valid visas. Canada designated Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organisation in June 2024, and Canadian officials said individuals with links to the IRGC are inadmissible. Taj has been described as a former IRGC commander, a connection that drew pointed criticism from Canadian politicians. Conservative MP Michelle Rempel Garner questioned how Taj had advanced as far as the border at all. The Iranian federation characterised the treatment of its officials as an insult to "one of the most distinguished institutions of Iran's armed forces," and the delegation flew back to Turkey on the first available flight.
The episode illustrates the complex logistical and political pressures facing the 2026 tournament, which is co-hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The expanded 48-team format requires teams, staff, and officials to travel repeatedly between three jurisdictions with differing visa and security frameworks. Iran had requested that FIFA relocate its matches away from US territory following the outbreak of the US-Israel military conflict with Iran, but FIFA rejected that request. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio indicated Washington had no objection to Iranian players attending, while stipulating that individuals with IRGC ties would not be permitted entry.
Outside the Vancouver convention centre hosting the Congress, around 30 protesters draped in Iranian flags called for regime change, chanting slogans against the IRGC and in support of Iranian opposition figure Reza Pahlavi. The absence of Iran's delegation from the Congress floor — the first time direct representation was missing — underscored just how fraught the country's participation remains, even after Infantino's firm assurances.
The stakes extend well beyond football. Iran's inclusion or exclusion from the world's most-watched sporting event has become a proxy for broader questions about diplomacy, sanctions, and the limits of sport as a neutral space. FIFA has framed its insistence on Iran's participation as a matter of unity, but the coming months will test whether the practical machinery of three host nations can deliver on that principle.