Iran to attend World Cup draw after reversing its planned boycott | World Cup 2026

Iran has called off its boycott of the World Cup draw, with team representatives now expected to attend the glitzy event in Washington DC on Friday.

Last week, the Football Federation of Iran (FFIRI) announced it would stay away after three members of its delegation were denied visas to enter the United States.

However, on Thursday, Iranian Sports Minister Ahmad Donyamali told Iranian news agency IRNA that head coach Amir Ghalenoei would be among the participants. “Our representatives have a visa and should participate in the World Cup draw,” he said.

The Tehran Times suggested that Ghalenoei would travel to the United States with Omid Jamali, the head of the federation’s international relations department.

Iran is one of 19 countries whose citizens cannot enter the United States, following a directive issued by Donald Trump in June. An exemption from the ban was granted to athletes, coaches or “persons in a necessary support role” who were traveling for the World Cup. The Iranian federation said last week that it had requested seven visas but that three names had been rejected by the United States, including that of FFIRI president Mehdi Taj.

Concerns remain over the possible effects of the travel ban on fans from Iran and Haiti, who are also on the list, and who wish to attend the tournament next year. Fifa has confirmed the creation of the Fifa Pass, a system which will give World Cup ticket holders priority access to the visa application process ahead of the tournament. But the success of applications is not guaranteed.

This week, a number of human rights organizations have raised concerns about possible mistreatment of foreign and minority fans at the World Cup. “The Trump administration has aggressively pursued a systematic anti-human rights campaign to target, detain and disappear immigrants in communities across the United States – including the deployment of the National Guard to World Cup cities,” said Jamil Dakwar, human rights director at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

A spokesperson for the US State Department said of the distribution of World Cup visas: “We are doing everything we can to support a successful World Cup. At the same time, the Trump administration will not back down from upholding US law and the highest standards of national security and public safety in the conduct of our visa process. We generally will not comment on the department’s actions regarding specific cases.”