{"id":699084,"date":"2026-04-02T07:14:16","date_gmt":"2026-04-02T07:14:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/699084\/"},"modified":"2026-04-02T07:14:16","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T07:14:16","slug":"iran-will-participate-in-world-cup-fifa-president-gianni-infantino","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/699084\/","title":{"rendered":"Iran will participate in World Cup: FIFA president Gianni Infantino"},"content":{"rendered":"

FIFA president Gianni Infantino said Iran will participate in this summer\u2019s World Cup as planned despite its fractured relationship with the United States.<\/p>\n

Iran had been angling to move its scheduled games <\/a>to Mexico after Donald Trump declared\u00a0it was not \u201cappropriate\u201d for the team to <\/a>play in the US amid its conflict with the country, but Infantino said Tuesday nothing about the event\u2019s calendar will change.<\/p>\n

\"FIFAFIFA President Gianni Infantino watches a soccer match between Iran and Costa Rica. AP<\/p>\n

\u201cIran will be at the World Cup,\u201d Infantino said, according to French news agency AFP<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Infantino was at an exhibition matchup between Costa Rica and Iran in Turkey when he made the declaration.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s why we\u2019re here,\u201d Infantino continued. \u201cWe\u2019re delighted because they\u2019re a very, very strong team. I\u2019m very happy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"TheThe World Cup will begin in June. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n

Iran\u2019s involvement in the World Cup had been a question mark since February, following the\u00a0US and Israel\u2019s airstrikes<\/a>\u00a0on the country.<\/p>\n

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In early March, Iranian sports minister Ahmad Donyamali stated the country would \u201cunder no circumstances<\/a>\u201d take part in the tournament. <\/p>\n

Yet when Trump said he didn\u2019t \u201cbelieve it is appropriate that they be there, for their own life and safety,\u201d Iran seemed to change its stance by writing in an Instagram post that\u00a0\u201cno one can exclude\u201d it\u00a0from the World Cup<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve seen the team,\u201d Infantino said, \u201cI\u2019ve spoken to the players and the coach, so everything is fine.\u201d<\/p>\n

The World Cup will kick off in June in the US, Mexico and Canada. Iran is slated to play its first two matchups at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, before it hits the pitch at Lumen Field in Seattle.<\/p>\n

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