The president of Iran’s football federation stated on Wednesday, as reported by Iran’s Fars news agency, that the country will “boycott the United States, but not the World Cup.”
Iran’s participation in the upcoming World Cup, co-hosted by the U.S., Mexico, and Canada this summer, is uncertain following air strikes by the United States and Israel on Iran at the end of February.
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Iran is scheduled to play all three of its group matches in the U.S. However, Mehdi Taj, the chief of Iran’s football federation, commented on Wednesday: “We will be preparing for the World Cup. We will boycott the United States, but we will not boycott the World Cup.”
These remarks followed a statement from Taj shared on the X account of the Iranian embassy in Mexico on Tuesday, revealing that they are “negotiating” with FIFA to potentially relocate Iran’s matches to Mexico.
“Given President Trump’s direct statement that he cannot guarantee the safety of the Iranian national team, we will certainly not travel to America,” Taj said. “We are currently in discussions with FIFA about holding Iran’s World Cup matches in Mexico.”
FIFA responded with a statement on Tuesday, mentioning that it is “in regular contact with all participating member associations, including Iran, to discuss planning for the FIFA World Cup 2026.” They look forward to all teams participating according to the match schedule established on Dec. 6, 2025.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino addressed the Middle East conflict publicly for the first time after a FIFA council meeting on Thursday, expressing optimism that all teams would compete in a spirit of fair play and mutual respect.
He emphasized, “We have a schedule. We will soon have the 48 competing teams confirmed and we want the FIFA World Cup to proceed as planned.”
If the games are relocated, issues would still arise regarding the knockout stage. For instance, if both Iran and the U.S. finish second in their groups, they could meet at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on July 3.
Moving the matches would be an unprecedented action less than three months before the World Cup begins.
Last week, Trump stated that it might not be “appropriate” for Iran to participate in the World Cup “for their life and safety.”
When asked on Tuesday if Mexico would be willing to host the matches, President Claudia Sheinbaum responded in a news conference: “Yes. Mexico maintains diplomatic relations with every country in the world, so we will wait to see what FIFA decides.”
The Fars news agency also reported Wednesday that Iran plans to move forward with friendly matches against Nigeria and Costa Rica in Türkiye later this month.
PA and The Associated Press contributed to this report.