Sheinbaum Opens Mexico Base For Iran At The Fifa World Cup
Mexico moved to host iran at the fifa world cup after the United States would not allow the squad to stay overnight there. Claudia Sheinbaum said Mexico had no reason to turn Iran away, and the arrangement shifts the team’s base to Tijuana even though its matches are in the United States.
Sheinbaum backs Iran stay
Sheinbaum said the request came through Fifa, and Mexico said yes. "We have no reason to deny them the possibility of staying in Mexico," she said.
She also laid out the problem in direct terms: "The United States does not want the Iranian team to stay overnight, but they are going to play three matches there." Her government’s answer was simple: "So they asked us: 'Can they stay overnight in Mexico?' And we said: 'Yes, no problem.' We have no problem."
Tijuana replaces Tucson
Fifa later said Iran’s training base will be at Centro Xoloitzcuintle in Tijuana, Mexico. Iran were originally given Tucson, Arizona as their World Cup base, so the move places their camp across the border from the venues where they will actually play.
That setup is unusual because all three of Iran’s World Cup matches are scheduled in the United States. They are set to play New Zealand on 15 June in Los Angeles, Belgium on 21 June in Los Angeles and Egypt on 26 June in Seattle.
Iran’s visa push
Iran are preparing for the tournament in Antalya, southern Turkey, while the paperwork side of their World Cup remains active. Ahmad Donyamali said Fifa had promised that all Iranian players would receive visas to play in the United States this summer.
He also said the Iranian FA presented Fifa with a list of 10 conditions for Iran’s participation, including allowing players, coaches and officials who have completed military service with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to receive visas. Marco Rubio said Iran’s players would be welcome at the tournament, but individuals with links to the IRGC could face entry restrictions.
Some members of the Iranian squad went to the US embassy in Ankara on Thursday to submit visa applications for the tournament. For Iran, the immediate gain is a base in Mexico; for the team, the harder part is still getting everyone through the American entry process before June.
