Iran’s delegation will depart for his or her World Cup base camp Mexico on Saturday, regardless of the continued ambiguity over their visas for america lower than two weeks earlier than their opening recreation.
“The Iran nationwide soccer workforce will depart Antalya for Tijuana at 15:20 (1220 GMT) on Saturday, June 6, and is scheduled to reach in Mexico at 1:30 am (0730 GMT) on Sunday, June 7,” the workforce’s official social media account introduced on Wednesday.
They may journey to Mexico by way of Spain.
Iran will play their final World Cup warm-up recreation towards Mali on Thursday in Turkiye, the place they’ve been coaching for the upcoming match since final month.
The squad have performed three friendlies in two coaching camps in Antalya because the begin of the US and Israel’s struggle on Iran on February 28.
Staff Melli misplaced to Nigeria and beat Costa Rica and The Gambia. Their final fixture in Turkiye will likely be performed behind closed doorways.
“Contemplating the significance of the Iranian nationwide soccer workforce’s pleasant match towards Mali, and in keeping with the tactical targets of Iran’s head coach, tomorrow’s match towards Mali will likely be held behind closed doorways and with out media attendance,” Iran’s soccer federation stated in a press release.
On Monday night, Iran’s soccer federation chief Mehdi Taj stated the gamers have been anticipated to get their visas for Mexico both on Tuesday or Wednesday “after which a US visa will likely be issued rapidly”.
The federation has not revealed whether or not visas for Mexico and the US have been obtained.
The World Cup, which is being collectively hosted by the US, Mexico and Canada, runs from June 11 to July 19.
Iran have been drawn in Group G and can play New Zealand and Belgium in Los Angeles on June 15 and 21, adopted by a recreation towards Egypt in Seattle on June 26.
US is not going to permit IRGC members to ’embed’
In the meantime, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio informed lawmakers on Tuesday that his nation wouldn’t let Iranians with ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) “embed” themselves within the World Cup delegation.
Rubio made the feedback whereas testifying at a Senate Overseas Relations Committee listening to in Washington.
“What we’re not going to permit is for them to embed of their delegation a bunch of those that we all know don’t have anything to do with athletics and have ties to the IRGC or issues of that nature, so we have been going to look at that very intently,” Rubio stated on the listening to.
In April, an Iranian soccer federation delegation turned again at Toronto’s essential airport, citing their remedy by Canadian immigration, and missed a pre-World Cup FIFA gathering in Vancouver.
The delegation members, together with Taj, turned again upon arrival at Toronto’s Pearson airport regardless of holding legitimate visas, citing what was described because the “unacceptable behaviour of immigration officers”.
“They [delegation] returned to Turkiye on the primary obtainable flight as a result of unacceptable behaviour of immigration officers on the airport and the insult to probably the most honourable organs of the Iranian nation’s armed forces,” the Iranian soccer federation stated in a press release following the incident.
In 2024, Canada listed Iran’s IRGC as a terrorist organisation, and statements from the Canadian authorities indicated that Taj was denied entry because of his alleged ties with the IRGC.
The incident prompted the federation to hunt reassurance from FIFA that the US is not going to insult the IRGC in the course of the World Cup.
“[The] Individuals, in the event that they assure to not insult our navy establishments and the IRGC, we’ll go,” Taj informed state broadcaster IRIB in Might.
“If they provide such a assure that an incident like Canada doesn’t occur they usually positively guarantee it, we’ll go,” he added.
A minimum of 3,468 individuals have been killed in US-Israeli assaults on Iran, in response to Iran’s Ministry of Well being. Greater than 26,500 individuals have been injured, together with not less than 4,000 ladies and 1,621 kids.
Iranian forces retaliated, launching assaults on Center East nations the place US troops are deployed, in addition to Israel.
