March 17 (Reuters) – Iran’s football federation is in discussions with FIFA about moving their World Cup matches to Mexico from the United States due to concerns about the safety of their players, Iranian football president Mehdi Taj said on Monday.
Iran’s participation in the global soccer showpiece was thrown into doubt after co-hosts the United States launched joint air strikes at the country along with Israel.
U.S. President Donald Trump said last week that Iran were welcome to participate but suggested it might not be appropriate for them to play in the U.S. “for their own life and safety”.
“When Trump has explicitly stated that he cannot ensure the security of the Iranian national team, we will certainly not travel to America,” said Taj in a post on the Iranian embassy in Mexico’s X account.
“We are negotiating with FIFA to hold Iran’s World Cup matches in Mexico.”
Soccer’s global governing body FIFA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
HUGE LOGISTICAL SWITCH
Iran secured a trip to a fourth successive World Cup by topping their group in the third round of Asian qualifying last year.
The tournament is due to kick off on June 11 in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, with Iran scheduled to play two group matches in Los Angeles and one in Seattle. Belgium, Egypt and New Zealand are Iran’s opponents in Group G.
The organising committees for matches in Los Angeles and Seattle did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside normal U.S. business hours.
The prospect of shifting Iran’s fixtures to Mexico would mark a significant logistical switch for the tournament, though relocating matches for security or geopolitical reasons is not unprecedented.
In September last year, Scotland secured a 2-0 World Cup qualifying win over Belarus at Zalaegerszeg near the Austrian and Slovenian borders, after a ruling by UEFA over the role of Belarus as a staging ground for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
In other sports, soured political relations between India and Pakistan means the nuclear-armed neighbours only face each other at neutral venues in multi-team cricket tournaments.
India refused to travel to Pakistan for last year’s Champions Trophy and were allowed to play all their matches in Dubai instead.
FEDERATION DECIDES
Should FIFA reject a switch of venue to Mexico it seems unlikely that Iran would travel to the U.S. and take part in the tournament while at war with one of the co-hosts.
Iran’s sports minister said last week it was not possible for the Iranian players to participate after the U.S. launched airstrikes alongside Israel against Tehran, killing the Islamic Republic’s supreme leader.
An official withdrawal would be the first in the modern era and leave FIFA with the urgent task of finding a replacement.
The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) said on Monday that it had not received any notification that Iran will withdraw from the event.
“At the end of the day, it’s the federation who should decide if they’re playing, and as of today, the federation has told us that they are going to the World Cup,” AFC General Secretary Windsor John told reporters in Kuala Lumpur.
(Reporting by Karan Prashant Saxena in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
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