The Iranian national team has received U.S. visas and can play its 2026 World Cup matches in the USA
The Iranian national football team has received U.S. visas to enter the United States of America during the 2026 World Cup, removing one of the biggest organizational uncertainties ahead of the start of the tournament. According to a report by the Associated Press, two U.S. officials confirmed that visas had been approved for members of the Iranian national team, and one of them said that all players had received approval and that the document-issuing process was in its final stage. The second official stated that visas had been issued to players, coaches, medical and technical staff, and part of the key logistical support team. This allows the national team to travel from its base in Tijuana, Mexico, to its Group G matches, which it will play in the U.S. cities of Inglewood, in the wider Los Angeles area, and Seattle.
The decision is important because the Iranian delegation had been waiting for weeks for the visa process to be resolved, while uncertainty grew due to tense relations between Washington and Tehran and the broader security situation. The Associated Press states that visa-processing problems had earlier also affected a change in the preparation plan: the Iranian national team was initially supposed to be based in Tucson, in the state of Arizona, but the base was moved to Tijuana, a city in northern Mexico near the border with California. According to available information, part of the applications from the wider delegation was not covered by the confirmed approvals or was subject to additional procedural checks, but U.S. officials did not publicly release a full list of approved and rejected requests. For the sporting part of the Iranian delegation, the most important thing is that the players and coaching staff have been given the possibility of entering the USA for official matches.
Matches in Los Angeles and Seattle remain on schedule
According to FIFA’s official schedule, Iran has been placed in Group G together with Belgium, Egypt, and New Zealand. It plays its first match on June 15, 2026, against New Zealand at the stadium FIFA refers to for the purposes of the tournament as Los Angeles Stadium, that is, the stadium in Inglewood. The second match, against Belgium, is scheduled six days later at the same location, while Iran plays its final group match on June 26 against Egypt at Seattle Stadium. These dates now have a much clearer organizational framework because the issue of the national team’s entry into the USA, which was necessary for all three of Iran’s group matches to be played, has been resolved.
Iran’s Group G schedule:
- June 15, 2026 – Iran against New Zealand, Los Angeles Stadium, Inglewood
- June 21, 2026 – Belgium against Iran, Los Angeles Stadium, Inglewood
- June 26, 2026 – Egypt against Iran, Seattle Stadium, Seattle
For Iran, the logistics are unusual because the team will not be permanently staying in the country where it plays its matches, but will instead move from Mexico across the border and then return to its base. Tijuana was chosen precisely because of its proximity to Southern California, which makes it easier to reach the two matches in the Los Angeles area. The trip to Seattle will be more complex and will require additional coordination of travel, security, and player recovery between matches. In sporting terms, such a schedule may affect the rhythm of preparations, but resolving the visa issue removes the risk that the national team will be unable to travel to official matches.
Why the base was moved from Arizona to Tijuana
The Iranian Football Federation had previously planned the final phase of preparations in Arizona, but that plan was changed after problems related to entry documents and security circumstances. Al Jazeera, citing Reuters, reported on May 23 that FIFA had approved Iran’s request to move its preparation base from Tucson to Tijuana. The president of the Iranian Football Federation, Mehdi Taj, said at the time in a video statement that the national team would be based at a camp in Tijuana, near the Pacific Ocean and the U.S.-Mexico border. Such a solution allowed the national team to prepare near its first two matches while not depending on a longer stay in the USA.
The Associated Press states that, before leaving for Mexico, the Iranian national team trained in Antalya, Turkey, and had already received Mexican visas through the Mexican embassy in Ankara. U.S. visas were processed through the U.S. embassy in Ankara, and the U.S. ambassador to Turkey, Tom Barrack, publicly thanked the embassy for carrying out the procedure. This course of events shows how preparations for the 2026 World Cup have become a multi-country administrative process, especially for national teams whose route involves multiple host countries, consular checks, and additional security assessments. In Iran’s case, sporting preparation and diplomatic logistics were closely connected right up to the start of the tournament.
Political context and an exception for major sports competitions
The visa issue for the Iranian national team was not merely technical. In June 2025, the White House published a presidential proclamation restricting the entry of nationals of several countries, including Iran, with an explanation related to national security and identity checks. The same document also lists exceptions, including athletes, members of sports teams, coaches, persons providing necessary support, and immediate family members when traveling to the World Cup, the Olympic Games, or other major sporting events designated by the U.S. Secretary of State. It is precisely this exception that creates the legal framework in which athletes and necessary personnel can obtain visas despite broader travel restrictions.
In its information for the World Cup, the U.S. Department of State states that travelers entering the USA must have a valid passport and an appropriate visa or travel authorization, depending on citizenship and status. At the same time, the Department emphasizes that security standards and public safety checks are applied when processing visas. This means that the exception for athletes does not function as an automatic right of entry, but as a possibility for an application to be processed within a special framework. That is why U.S. confirmations of visa issuance to Iranian players and coaching staff carried decisive weight for the final confirmation of their appearance on U.S. soil.
Sport and diplomacy at the largest tournament in history
The 2026 World Cup is the first edition of the tournament to be held in three countries: the United States of America, Mexico, and Canada. According to FIFA, the competition has been expanded to 48 national teams and 104 matches, with games played in 16 host cities. A larger number of national teams and matches also brings greater logistical demands, from international travel and security protocols to coordination with local authorities, airports, hotels, and training camps. The Iranian case is a particularly visible example of how a global sporting event can raise issues that go beyond the pitch, including immigration policy, diplomatic relations, and security organization.
For FIFA and the tournament organizers, it is important that all qualified national teams can compete according to the schedule, because the absence or administrative blocking of one team would have sporting, legal, and reputational consequences. In this case, the Group G schedule has not been changed, and the visa approvals allow the competition to continue according to plan. Still, the fact that the solution arrived immediately before the start of the tournament shows how tight the administrative deadlines were. It is usual for national teams in the final days before the World Cup to focus their attention on form, injuries, tactical preparation, and acclimatization, while Iran simultaneously had to wait for the resolution of the basic issue of travel.
What the approval means for Iran in Group G
In sporting terms, Iran can now direct its preparations toward its group opponents. Belgium enters the group as a European national team with extensive experience in major competitions, Egypt relies on a generation led by internationally established players, and New Zealand is an opponent against whom Iran will seek a strong start to the tournament. In its preview of Group G, FIFA states that Belgium, Egypt, Iran, and New Zealand meet in this group, and the expanded World Cup format further increases the importance of every point. Under the new system, the top two teams from each group advance, along with the eight best third-placed teams, which means that even draws can have great value in the fight for the knockout stage.
Iran traditionally comes to World Cups as one of Asia’s most stable national teams, but with limited success in attempts to advance from the group stage. At this tournament, an additional challenge will be preparation under extraordinary circumstances, including the change of base, travel from Mexico to the USA, and the pressure that accompanied the visa procedure. On the other hand, resolving the administrative issue may psychologically relieve the team because the focus returns to the pitch. For the players and coaching staff, the most important thing is that there is no longer an immediate obstacle to traveling to matches, which allows them to plan training, recovery, and daily routines in accordance with the confirmed schedule.
Fans and the wider delegation still depend on entry rules
Although the visa decision for the national team resolved the key sporting issue, it does not mean that all travel problems connected with Iranian nationals who would like to attend matches in the USA have automatically been resolved. U.S. entry rules still depend on each traveler’s status, type of visa or travel authorization, and security checks. According to information from the U.S. Department of State and FIFA’s travel instructions, possessing a match ticket alone is not enough to enter the host country; travelers must also meet the requirements of the country to which they are traveling. Therefore, the approval for the national team applies primarily to the sporting delegation and necessary personnel, and cannot be interpreted as a general lifting of restrictions for all travelers from Iran.
This distinction will be important throughout the tournament, especially because the 2026 World Cup is being played in three jurisdictions with different entry rules: the American, Mexican, and Canadian ones. National teams, journalists, official personnel, and fans must plan travel according to the rules of each host country, while FIFA, in its travel guidelines, refers users to official government sources for visas and authorizations. In Iran’s case, the sporting delegation has a confirmed route for matches in the USA, while individual travelers will still have to go through regular procedures. This reduces administrative uncertainty for the team, but broader travel issues remain tied to U.S. visa policy.
Resolution immediately before the start of the tournament
The resolution of the visa issue came several days before the start of the World Cup, which opens on June 11, 2026, in Mexico. For Iran, this meant that the plan to travel to Tijuana could be carried out without the biggest remaining obstacle, followed by the final phase of preparations for the match against New Zealand on June 15. The Associated Press states that, at the moment of confirmation, it was still unclear when all travel documents would be returned to the delegation, but the possibility of issuance as early as Friday or Saturday had been mentioned as realistic. In practice, this opened the way for the national team to arrive at its Mexican base and continue preparations according to the schedule.
For the tournament organizers, the case is a reminder that an expanded World Cup brings not only more matches and a larger sporting program, but also more complex political and administrative circumstances. Iran will, according to the current schedule, play all its group matches in the USA, but its operational center will be in Mexico. Such a model is not common, but in the given circumstances it represents a compromise that enables the national team’s participation, the implementation of security checks, and the preservation of the competition calendar. After weeks of uncertainty, the Iranian team now has a confirmed route to the stadiums where it will try to achieve its sporting goal: securing progression from Group G.
Sources:
- Associated Press – report on the approval of U.S. visas for the Iranian national team, statements by U.S. officials, the base in Tijuana, and the match schedule (link)
- FIFA – official schedule of 2026 World Cup matches and list of host cities (link)
- FIFA – official travel and visa information for the 2026 World Cup in the USA, Mexico, and Canada (link)
- U.S. Department of State – information on U.S. visas for travelers connected with the 2026 World Cup (link)
- The White House – presidential proclamation on entry restrictions and exceptions for athletes and members of sports teams at major competitions (link)
- Al Jazeera / Reuters – report on the relocation of Iran’s base from Arizona to Tijuana with FIFA approval (link)