Iran’s national football team played their last 2026 World Cup warm-up match on June 4, 2026, defeating Mali 2-0 in a closed-door game held in Turkey. Goals came from Saeid Ezatolahi and Ramin Rezaeian as the team secured their final tune-up ahead of the tournament [1, 2, 3].
Since mid-May, Iran trained in Antalya, Turkey, following the suspension of their domestic league caused by US and Israeli air strikes on Iran in February 2026. The team completed four warm-up matches in Turkey, achieving three wins against Costa Rica, Gambia, and Mali, with one loss to Nigeria [1, 2, 4, 5].
Originally slated to base themselves in Tucson, Arizona, Iran received FIFA permission to relocate their World Cup camp to Tijuana, Mexico. The delegation departed Antalya on June 6, flying via Spain to reach Tijuana early on June 7 [1, 6, 7, 8].
Iran obtained Mexican visas for the players by early June; visas were issued within 48 hours without requiring in-person appearances [2, 4, 8]. However, a main concern remains the pending US visas for the squad to enter the United States for their group stage matches. Iran’s opponents in Group G include New Zealand on June 15 and Belgium on June 21, both in Los Angeles, with a final group game against Egypt in Seattle on June 26 [1, 2, 9].
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the US government welcomes the Iranian team but will not allow individuals linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to be part of the delegation. "What we're not going to allow is for them to embed in their delegation a bunch of people that we know have nothing to do with athletics and have ties to the IRGC or things of that nature, so we were going to watch that very closely," Rubio said [1, 4].
Both the US and Canada classify the IRGC as a terrorist organization. Iran’s Football Federation President Mehdi Taj was refused entry to Canada in April over alleged IRGC links [2, 5]. Taj also stated, "The visa issue is currently one of the most important matters. FIFA must resolve the issuance process so visas are issued on time and team members and companions can travel without problems" [8].
Iran’s delegation is now in Tijuana preparing for the World Cup matches in the US. Their first group stage game against New Zealand is scheduled for June 15 in Los Angeles [7, 9].
