Iran’s sports minister declared Wednesday that the national soccer team will not compete at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, citing the US-Israeli military campaign that killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and left thousands dead. This would be the first withdrawal of its kind in the modern era of the tournament.
“Considering that this corrupt regime has assassinated our leader, under no circumstances can we participate in the World Cup,” Sports Minister Ahmad Donyamali told state television.
He said the US and Israel had dragged Iran into two wars in eight or nine months, killing thousands, and left the country with no basis for participation. Khamenei, killed on the first day of US-Israeli strikes, has since been succeeded by his son, Mojtaba Khamenei.
Read: Regime Change? Iran Just Doubled Down With Mojtaba Khamenei
FIFA has not formally confirmed the withdrawal or named a replacement, saying it continues to monitor the situation. Under Article 6.7 of the 2026 World Cup regulations, FIFA may replace Iran with another association at its sole discretion.
Sources told ESPN the governing body is unlikely to make a firm decision before its Congress on April 30. Iranian Football Federation president Mehdi Taj had signaled the withdrawal even earlier: within 24 hours of the first strikes, he said the team “cannot be expected to look forward to the World Cup with hope.”
Iran, the first non-host nation to qualify for the expanded 48-team tournament, sits in Group G alongside Belgium, Egypt, and New Zealand, with matches scheduled in Los Angeles and Seattle. The Seattle organizing committee said Friday it had received no notice from FIFA of any schedule change.
Iraq is the likeliest replacement. The Asian Football Confederation’s next-best qualifier is already slated to play an intercontinental playoff against Bolivia or Suriname on March 31 in Monterrey, Mexico — but Iraq head coach Graham Arnold has asked FIFA to reschedule after regional conflict closed Iraqi airspace until April 1, leaving him stranded in Dubai.
If FIFA elevates Iraq to a direct berth before the playoff, the United Arab Emirates would likely inherit Iraq’s intercontinental playoff spot. If Iraq wins the playoff first, UAE would move into line behind them. The intercontinental playoff window opens March 26.
President Donald Trump sent mixed signals on Iran’s participation. FIFA president Gianni Infantino confirmed Tuesday that Trump told him Iran’s team was “of course, welcome to compete.” But Trump posted on Truth Social on Thursday that while Iran was not being banned, he did not believe it was “appropriate” for the team to attend — citing player safety — a contrast to his March 3 comment to reporters that he “really does not care” whether Iran plays.
Iran’s national team responded the same day on Instagram, saying the World Cup’s governing body is FIFA, not any individual or country, and warning that the only nation that should face exclusion is one that “carries the title of host yet lacks the ability to provide security.”
Under FIFA regulations, a team that withdraws after qualifying risks a substantial fine and a ban from future competition. No team in the modern era has pulled out mid-cycle. The closest parallel is 1992, when UN sanctions prompted UEFA to remove Yugoslavia from Euro ’92 just 10 days before the tournament and hand their spot to Denmark, who went on to win the title.
The 2026 World Cup opens on June 11, when Mexico faces South Africa in Mexico City, and runs through July 19.
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