Disentangling sport from politics has been a struggle since the Fifa World Cup's inception, but never more so than this year, as one of the three host nations, the US, is locked in a military and diplomatic standoff with Iran, whose team is scheduled to play on American soil.
The war launched by the US and Israel has sparked anger globally against the two countries and Iran, because of its severe economic impact. Experts tell The National that the race is now on for who can more effectively “sportswash” their reputation through football's biggest tournament, even by exploiting logistical hurdles like visas.
The Iranian team only received its US visas 10 days before their first match in Los Angeles after fears that they would not be granted them at all.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the issue was not with the players but with the officials accompanying them. “The problem with Iran, it would be not their athletes, it would be some of the other people they would want to bring with them, some of whom have ties to the IRGC [Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps]. We may not be able to let them in,” he explained.
In anticipation of difficulties entering the US, Iran had asked for its matches in Los Angeles and Seattle to be moved to Mexico. But Fifa refused. The world football association's chief, Gianni Infantino, a close friend of the US President, said there was no Plan B. “Plan A is the only plan."
Even now that the Iranian national team has gotten its visas so close to the tournament's launch, the US and Iran will not miss the opportunity to score political points and attempt to rehabilitate their public images.
Iranians coming from abroad to attend the matches will show that “they're not scared to play in a devil's land, as they call it”, said Gregory Papanikos, president of the Athens Institute for Education and Research and author of a paper called Goals and Geopolitics: The Iran-US War and the 2026 World Cup.
The Iranian team could also have something to gain from playing in Los Angeles, where they are scheduled to go up against New Zealand on June 15. “In California, there is a huge Iranian community who will support the team,” said Mr Papanikos, speaking to The National on the Beyond the Headlines podcast.
And with 48 nations from across the world taking part, each followed by their supporters, the US may have to reconsider visa restrictions it has imposed on at least 75 countries, perhaps under pressure from Fifa itself.
“It is really unusual that so many people from so many different countries are being stopped from entering the United States because, ultimately, you would normally expect around mega events for there to be relatively free movement into and out of countries,” said Simon Chadwick, professor of Afro-Eurasian sport at Emlyon Business School.
He expects Fifa to challenge the US to be more open, enabling the football body to deliver on its remit and “be the custodian and guardian of the development of world football”.
While there has been no sign of this in public, it is unclear whether pressure is being put on the US behind closed doors. President Donald Trump's tone about Iran's participation has changed, from saying in March that it would not be “appropriate” for the team to come, to deferring more recently to Mr Infantino on whether the players and fans would be allowed in.
Sanctions
While peace talks between the US and Iran take the world on a military, geopolitical and economic rollercoaster, apparently inching closer to a deal one minute and launching into attack and counter-attack mode the next, one issue that would inevitably impact Iran in the World Cup is the matter of sanctions.
The US has imposed sweeping economic, military and trade sanctions on Iran that affect everything from medicine and agriculture to cryptocurrency.
Mexico, the other host nation along with Canada, has agreed to host the Iranian team. But that does not resolve all of the many issues that could arise.
Mr Chadwick cited the 2018 World Cup, when Nike terminated its contracts with the Iranian national team at short notice over concerns about breaching international sanctions against their country.
This year, even the question of which company is involved in transporting the players or supplying their food is complicated.
“Let's imagine the Iranian Football Association has contacted a bus company somewhere in Mexico or in the United States and asked them to get picked up from the airport. Now, obviously, that is a contract which would therefore exist between the bus company and the Iranian Football Association and that potentially could be seen as a case of sanctions-busting,” Mr Chadwick said.
The team's catering company and the hotel they stay at would face the same problem, he said.
With Iran's first game on June 15 (June 16, 5am in the UAE), pressure is mounting for resolution of these issues. They have certainly made this an event to watched – if not for the sport itself, then for how the pitch could be where major issues are either put aside or resolved.
