Iran's national football team were heading to Turkey yesterday following a "constructive" meeting with Fifa officials as the World Cup approaches.
The team are expected to apply for visas in Turkey before travelling to the US for their training camp, which is located in Tucson, Arizona. Fifa's secretary general Mattias Grafstrom said he had held a constructive and positive meeting with Mehdi Taj, the head of Iran’s football federation.
“We’ve had a constructive meeting together with the Iran football association,” Mr Grafstrom told Reuters at the weekend. “We’re working closely together and very much looking forward to welcoming them at the Fifa World Cup.”
The Iranian team announced that they would soon begin training at the assigned training camp site.
"Team Melli’s camp in the United States will be based in Tuscon, Arizona," the team's website said. "While the reasons behind the selection of this site is unclear, it is nevertheless a fully equipped training centre with a football stadium, a baseball field and many training facilities."
The US is hosting the World Cup, which begins next month, along with Canada and Mexico. Iran's participation has been in doubt due to the war with the US. Tension is high between the US and Iran, with Iran yesterday sending a new proposal aimed at ending the war.
In addition to the continuing war, Iran is on a list of nations under a full travel ban that was initiated by President Donald Trump last year. Though Mr Trump has signalled in recent weeks that the team will be welcome in the US for the World Cup, it is not known how the ban and the war will affect their travel.
The Iranian team are scheduled to play all three of their group matches in the US, with the first to take place in Los Angeles against New Zealand.
The problem may not be limited to the US – a football delegation led by Mr Taj left soon after arriving in Toronto late last month, claiming they had been subjected to “unacceptable behaviour" by immigration officials”, despite holding valid visas.
