As the 2026 FIFA World Cup draws ever closer, Iran’s national men’s football team has landed in the Mexican border city of Tijuana, but a lingering visa dispute with the United States has thrown the team’s tournament preparations into uncertainty just days before their opening match.
The squad was forced to abandon its pre-tournament training camp in Tucson, Arizona, and relocate across the U.S.-Mexico border over complications tied to long-running geopolitical tensions involving Iran. While all 26 members of the playing squad have received approval for U.S. visas to compete in the World Cup – which co-hosted across the U.S., Mexico and Canada – multiple high-ranking members of the Iranian national delegation remain locked out of the U.S. due to rejected visa applications.
Among those denied entry are the Iranian Football Federation’s secretary-general and vice-president, as well as several key coaching staff members whose roles are considered integral to the team’s on-pitch performance. Speaking to reporters over the weekend after the team’s arrival in Tijuana, veteran defender Ehsan Hajsafi publicly called out governing body FIFA to intervene and resolve the administrative crisis before Iran kicks off their campaign.
“First of all, we’re very happy that the team has finally arrived, and we’re delighted about that,” Hajsafi told reporters. “Unfortunately, several key members of our coaching staff, whose roles are very important within the team, were not granted visas.” He added that the whole squad is hoping FIFA can use its authority to push for a solution before their first fixture.
A senior U.S. official confirmed to ABC News that all first-team players received visa approvals, but stated that some non-playing applicants were rejected after applying under what the U.S. government calls “false pretences.” The controversy comes amid long-standing heightened geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and Iran, and U.S. authorities have raised sharp security concerns around members of the Iranian delegation ahead of the tournament.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio made the country’s position clear in comments to reporters on Friday, confirming that U.S. consular officials are vetting all delegation members to screen for any links to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which is designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S. government.
“We have no problem with the athletes or their support staff. But what we’re not going to allow is for them to embed in their delegation people that we know have nothing to do with athletics and have ties to the IRGC,” Rubio said.
Iran is drawn into Group C of the 2026 World Cup, and is scheduled to play their opening match against New Zealand on June 15 in Inglewood, California. They will face Belgium in Los Angeles on June 21, before wrapping up their group stage fixtures against Egypt in Seattle on June 26. All three of the team’s group matches are scheduled to take place on U.S. soil, leaving the visa dispute as a critical unresolved issue that could upend the team’s tournament if not resolved quickly.