The president of Iran’s football federation stated on Wednesday, as reported by Iran’s Fars news agency, that Iran will “boycott the United States, but not the World Cup.”
Concerns regarding Iran’s participation in the finals, which are set to be co-hosted by the U.S., Mexico, and Canada this summer, have arisen following air strikes launched by the United States and Israel against the country at the end of February.
Iran is scheduled to play all three of its group matches in the U.S., but Mehdi Taj, the head of the football federation, remarked on Wednesday: “We will be preparing for the World Cup. We will boycott the United States, but we will not boycott the World Cup.”
This statement followed remarks attributed to Taj that were shared on the X account of the Iranian embassy in Mexico on Tuesday, indicating that they were “negotiating” with FIFA to relocate Iran’s matches to Mexico.
“When Trump has explicitly stated that he cannot ensure the security of the Iranian national team, we will certainly not travel to America,” the statement noted. “We are currently negotiating with FIFA to hold Iran’s matches in the World Cup in Mexico.”
FIFA issued a statement indicating that it is “in regular contact with all participating member associations, including [the Islamic Republic of] Iran, to discuss planning for the FIFA World Cup 2026. FIFA is looking forward to all participating teams competing as per the match schedule announced on Dec. 6, 2025.”
According to Britain’s Press Association, as of Thursday morning, the Iranian federation had not communicated any information to FIFA regarding the relocation of Iran’s matches.
Even if Iran’s group games were shifted, there would still be complications with subsequent knockout matches. For instance, if Iran and the U.S. both finish second in their group, they would meet at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on July 3.
Relocating the games would be unprecedented with less than three months remaining before the World Cup begins.
U.S. President Donald Trump stated last week that it would not be “appropriate” for Iran to participate in the World Cup “for their life and safety.”
When asked on Tuesday if Mexico was willing to host the matches, Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum responded at a news conference: “Yes. Mexico maintains diplomatic relations with every country in the world, therefore we will wait to see what FIFA decides.”
The Fars news agency also reported that Taj mentioned on Wednesday that Iran plans to proceed with friendlies against Nigeria and Costa Rica in Türkiye later this month.
PA and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
