Fifa Negotiations Put Iran’s World Cup Journey Between Two Countries
A statement from Iran’s embassy in Mexico City said the country is negotiating with fifa to relocate its first-round World Cup matches to Mexico from the United States, citing the conflict in the Middle East and problems securing visas and logistical support. The short declaration opened a diplomatic thread that now stretches from training camp plans in Arizona to match schedules in California and Washington state.
What Iran is asking Fifa to do
Iran’s national football federation is asking for its three group-stage matches to be moved out of the United States and held in Mexico. Iranian football chief Mehdi Taj said that when US President Donald Trump had explicitly stated he could not ensure the security of the Iranian national team, Iran would not travel to America. The embassy in Mexico highlighted what it called a lack of cooperation from the US government on visas and logistical support for the delegation, statements that frame the federation’s negotiation with the governing body.
Organizers, confederations and opponents respond
FIFA has said it is in regular contact with all participating associations and is looking forward to all teams competing as set out in the match schedule announced on Dec. 6, 2025. At the continental level, AFC general secretary Windsor John told reporters that the confederation had not received any notification that Iran would withdraw and that the federation had indicated it was going to the tournament.
Voices from outside Iran have questioned the logistics of moving games on short notice. New Zealand soccer federation chief executive Andrew Pragnell said he did not foresee a move to another country as remotely feasible, noting that tens of thousands of tickets had already been sold for Iran’s scheduled fixtures and that moving the matches would create complex additional problems. Iran’s sports minister Ahmad Donyamali expressed a stance that the players’ participation was in doubt in the wake of recent air strikes and retaliatory actions across the region.
From Tucson to the pitch: a fragile campaign
The team’s planned base camp, currently slated for Tucson, Arizona, anchors the practical side of this campaign: travel, training and match-day preparation. Iran is scheduled to play New Zealand and Belgium in Los Angeles before finishing group play against Egypt in Seattle, and those locations have been cited in exchanges among officials as they weigh alternatives. Iran’s ambassador to Mexico, Abolfazl Pasandideh, urged that the matches be held in Mexico and expressed a preference for the Mexican venues; national federation president Mehdi Taj reiterated that the federation was negotiating with FIFA for relocation.
The debate places a national team between competing imperatives: the need to protect players and staff amid a wider regional confrontation, and the operational realities of a 48-nation tournament with sold tickets, contracted venues and established schedules. Any move would be unprecedented so close to the tournament and would require agreement from tournament organizers, confederations and opponent teams. For now, the federation’s negotiation and the organizers’ insistence on the published schedule leave the campaign in a state of uncertainty.
The story began with a diplomatic note posted by Iran’s embassy in Mexico City and, if the talks continue, it will be settled through a series of technical and political decisions. As preparations continue at the Tucson base and match plans remain on the calendars of Los Angeles and Seattle, iran’s negotiating posture and the responses from organizers will determine whether the team crosses a border or stays on the U. S. schedule—an outcome that depends squarely on the next moves by the federation, Mexico and fifa.
