Iran’s World Cup squad set off from Turkey for their training base in Mexico on Saturday… but some members of their entourage are still without US visas.
The team has three group matches in the United States this month, but as it stands up to 14 members of the staff and officials are without visas to attend the games in Los Angeles and Seattle.
The team was finally given the green light by Trump’s administration on Friday, but according to Iranian state television, the Iranian Football Federation secretary-general, Hedayat Mombeini, and its vice president, Mehdi Mohammad Nabi, are among 14 backroom staff and officials currently without the ability to enter the US.
It remains unclear whether the federation’s president, Mehdi Taj, had been issued a visa.
The team’s participation in the World Cup has been complicated by Iran’s war with Israel and the United States.
Problems with processing visas had earlier led Iran to move its training base from Tucson, Arizona, to Tijuana, on Mexico’s border with California.
Iran’s World Cup squad pose for a photo before leaving for the tournament in the USA
Fans cheered the players to their bus, where they then boarded a private jet to Mexico
The federation accused the US government of ‘vindictive behavior’ in refusing visas for ‘key managerial and administrative members’ of the team.
The decision had ‘effectively denied the Iranian national team the opportunity for a level playing field and a competition free from discrimination,’ said a statement on the federation’s website. It added that the federation would pursue the matter through world soccer authority FIFA.
The Iranian Embassy in Ankara, meanwhile, responded to an earlier social media post from US Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack, in which he congratulated his embassy staff for processing the Iran team’s visas.
‘You cannot whitewash conduct that violates FIFA regulations and breaches the United States’ host obligations merely by praising yourselves,’ the Iranian post read. ‘This represents the worst possible form of politically biased interference in sport.’
One US official earlier told The Associated Press that all players on the Iranian team were approved for visas, while a second official said visas had been issued for players, coaches, trainers and some support staff.
Donald Trump’s administration has not yet granted visas to many of the team’s staff
Iran’s players take turns to kiss the Quran as they leave for Antalya Airport on Saturday
A third official suggested that some applicants affiliated with the team had been rejected for requesting visas ‘under false pretenses.’
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the visas publicly.
The squad has been preparing for the World Cup at a training camp in Antalya, Turkey. The team said it has already received visas from Mexico’s Embassy in Ankara.
The players, dressed in blue blazers over white T-shirts, left the luxury Mardan Palace hotel in Antalya on Saturday afternoon. They boarded a private jet at the Mediterranean city’s airport and were due to fly directly to Mexico.
Iran plays its first two games in Inglewood, California, against New Zealand on June 15, and Belgium six days later, then heads to Seattle to face Egypt on June 26. Iran and the US could meet in the round of 32 on July 3 in Arlington, Texas, if both teams come second in their groups.
Iran’s players leave their bus to board a private jet to Mexico ahead of the World Cup
Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has been in hiding since American and Israeli forces killed his father
President Donald Trump in March had discouraged Iran from participating in the tournament, saying he didn’t think it was ‘appropriate’ and raising concerns over players’ ‘life and safety.’ A day later, Iran’s national team pushed back, saying ‘no one can exclude’ it from playing.
Iran finalized its team Monday, including 17 home-based players whose clubs have not played since February because of the war. Star forward Sardar Azmoun was dropped in March, reportedly because of a social media post that angered Iranian authorities during the war.
Iran’s sports minister said in March that it would ‘not be possible’ for the team to participate in the World Cup, but the republic’s soccer federation said in May it was moving ahead with a team.
The federation had insisted that all players and staff be granted visas, including those who had military service in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
