Iran Football Federation Chief Mehdi Taj has said no visas have yet been issued for Iran’s national team ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the United States.
According to Iranian state media, Taj said the federation would hold a decisive meeting with FIFA within days over unresolved visa concerns.
“Tomorrow or the day after tomorrow, we will have a decisive meeting with FIFA. They must give us guarantees because the visa issue has still not been resolved,” Taj said. “We have not received any account from the other side regarding who has been granted visas. No visas have been issued yet,” he added.
Taj explained that Iranian players are expected to travel to Ankara for fingerprinting as part of the visa process, although efforts are underway to have the process moved to Antalya to reduce travel complications. “The players must travel to Ankara for fingerprinting, but we are trying to arrange for this to be done in Antalya so there will be no need to travel to Ankara,” he said.
The visa concerns come amid continuing tensions between Iran, the United States and Israel following months of conflict that began on February 28, despite a fragile ceasefire that has reportedly been in place since April 8. Iran and the United States have also lacked formal diplomatic relations since 1980 following the hostage crisis after the Iranian Revolution.
Despite the uncertainty, Iran held a send-off ceremony on Wednesday for the national team, known as Team Melli, ahead of the tournament co-hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada. Iran are scheduled to base themselves in Tucson during the World Cup and will begin their campaign against New Zealand in Los Angeles on June 15 before facing Belgium and Egypt in Group G.
