The president of Iran’s football governing body said on Saturday World Cup training base moved to Mexico from the United States after obtaining approval from FIFA.
Mehdi Taj, president of the Iran Football Federation, announced the decision on Saturday in a statement issued by the federation’s press relations officer. FIFA has not yet confirmed the move.
Iran was scheduled to train in Tucson, Arizona, but may have to leave due to the uncertainty surrounding it. war in the Middle East and security concerns. Officials at Tucson’s Kino Sports Complex had no comment.
The coalition says the group is now based in Tijuana, Mexico, south of San Diego. This year’s World Cup starts on June 11 and ends on July 19 and it will be the same held jointly by the USCanada and Mexico.
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“All the camps of the teams of the countries participating in the World Cup must be approved by FIFA,” said Taj in his statement. “Fortunately, following the requests we submitted and the meetings we held with FIFA and World Cup officials in Istanbul, as well as the webinar meeting we had yesterday in Tehran with the esteemed FIFA Secretary General, our request to change the team’s base from the United States to Mexico.”
Iran plays Group G games in Inglewood, California, against New Zealand on June 15 and Belgium six days later, before facing Egypt on June 26 in Seattle. The alliance said Tijuana’s proximity to Inglewood, a suburb of Los Angeles, will benefit the team and the new facility “includes all the training facilities, a gym, a private restaurant and everything else the team needs.”
Team Melli is appearing in the World Cup for the fourth time in a row and the seventh overall. It never made it past the first round.
The Iranian federation said moving the camp would solve potential visa problems as the team would enter the US via Mexico. The president said the group “can even go to and from Mexico using Iran Air flights.”
Teams use base camps to train before and after games.
President Trump’s messages about Iran’s participation in the World Cup have not been clear. In a White House meeting in mid-March, Mr he told FIFA representatives that Iran is welcome to play in the tournament, officials told CBS News at the time. However, after two days, Mr. Trump he wrote to Truth Social that although the Iranian delegation was “welcome” to participate, he did not “believe that he should be there, for his health and safety.”
After those words, Taj said that Iran is negotiating with FIFA to played its games in Mexico.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino has repeatedly said that Iran will participate, however. On April 30 in Vancouver, Canada, while addressing the FIFA Congress – an annual meeting that brings together FIFA representatives from more than 200 countries – Infantino opened his words by “confirming, immediately, to those who want to say something or write something else, that Iran will be participating in the FIFA World Cup 2026. And Iran will play in the United States of America.”
