FIFA President Gianni Infantino has reiterated his support for Iran‘s participation in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, urging stakeholders to focus on football rather than politics amid ongoing controversy surrounding the team’s presence at the tournament.
“I am happy to see Iran in the World Cup. I promised them before that I was ready to go to Tehran by bus just to bring them to the tournament, and today they are participants. This is the spirit of football. I want you all to focus on the football,” Infantino said.
The FIFA chief’s comments come as Iran’s World Cup campaign has been overshadowed by visa disputes, ticket allocation controversies and broader geopolitical tensions involving the United States, one of the tournament’s co-hosts. Despite those challenges, FIFA has consistently maintained that Iran will compete in the competition as scheduled.
Infantino has repeatedly argued that football should serve as a unifying force, insisting that all qualified teams deserve the opportunity to participate on the sport’s biggest stage. Earlier this year, he confirmed that Iran’s matches would proceed according to the tournament draw and pledged FIFA’s continued support for the national team.
Iran qualified comfortably for the expanded 48-team World Cup and remains one of Asia’s strongest representatives heading into the tournament, where it is scheduled to play group-stage matches in the United States.
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