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Iran said that its men's football team are preparing for "proud and successful participation" at the 2026 Fifa World Cup, while US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that Iranian players will not be allowed to bring with them anyone with ties to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Iran's place at this summer's finals, to be held jointly in the US, Canada and Mexico, has been a hot topic since the United States and Israel launched a coordinated attack on the country on February 28.
A fragile ceasefire in the war was extended by US President Donald Trump on Wednesday.
This year's tournament features 48 teams – the most of any World Cup – with Iran one of the automatic qualifiers from Asia.
"The Ministry of Youth and Sports made an announcement about the full preparedness of our national soccer team for presence in the 2026 World Cup in the US, by the order of the minister," Iranian government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohejerani told Iran's state TV on Wednesday.
World governing body Fifa has consistently said that Iran will play at the World Cup in North America starting June 11.
Rubio told reporters at the White House on Thursday that Washington had no objections to Iranian players participating in the 2026 World Cup: "Nothing from the US has told them they can't come."
He added President Trump's administration "would not want to affect the athletes" but that players bringing anyone with ties to the IRGC, whom Washington has designated as a foreign terrorist organisation, would not be allowed.
"The problem with Iran 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. We may not be able to let them in but not the athletes themselves," Rubio said.
"They can't bring a bunch of IRGC terrorists into our country and pretend that they are journalists and athletic trainers."
Though the Iranian domestic league has shut down during the war, the team's official Instagram account posted photos this week of a practice in Tehran.
"The necessary arrangements that these dear ones need for the team's proud and successful participation," have been made, Mohejerani added.
Iran are scheduled to play two group-stage games at the Los Angeles Rams' stadium in Inglewood – against New Zealand and Belgium – then face Egypt in Seattle.
The team is due to arrive at its training camp in Tucson, Arizona no later than June 10, which is at least five days before Iran's first game as required by Fifa's World Cup rules.
Infantino has ruled out any suggestion that Iran's group games be moved to Mexico.
A key issue to be resolved is the US government giving entry visas to the Iranian delegation, including federation president Mehdi Taj, who was barred from attending the World Cup draw in Washington in December.
Infantino promised the Iranian team three weeks ago he would help find a training camp outside of the country for the team to prepare for the World Cup. That could take place in Turkey, where Iran played warm-up games last month in Antalya against Nigeria and Costa Rica.
As it stands, Iran are scheduled to playte at the World Cup. If Iran were to withdraw from the tournament or be banned from taking part, their spot is likely to go to a team from Asia.
That could benefit the UAE, although it is not a given. The Emirates lost a controversial mini-group play-off last year, where a 2-1 defeat to Qatar denied the country only a second appearance at the World Cup and a first since 1990.
Fifa’s regulations allow a replacement team to be nominated rather than leaving the slot vacant.
Typically, the allocation is chosen from the same federation, in this case the Asian Football Confederation, to keep the regional allocation slot balanced. This is not a codified rule, and is made at Fifa's discretion.
In an interview with the Financial Times, US special envoy Paolo Zampolli suggested that Italy, who missed out on qualification, replace the Iranians at the World Cup.
Fifa did not comment officially on Zampolli's suggestion but highlighted a statement made by Fifa president Gianni Infantino last week where he said: "The Iranian team is coming, for sure."
