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Iranian FA chief Mehdi Taj demanded that the United States respect Iran’s military institutions if the team is to participate in World Cup matches scheduled in California and Seattle in the coming months.
Taj’s comments come after Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that while the Iranian team would be allowed to compete on US soil, no person affiliated with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps would be allowed to cross the US border. Taj himself was a high-ranking member of the IRGC before joining Iran’s football program.
“We are going to the World Cup, which we qualified for, and our host is FIFA, not Mr. Trump or the United States,” Taj said Tuesday.
“If they agree to take us in, then they must also agree that they must not insult our military institutions in any way. Because if they do, then naturally it could create the same type of situation that happened in Canada, where there was a possibility that we would have to return.”
FIFA PRESIDENT GIANNI INFANTINO SAYS IRAN WILL ‘SURELY’ PLAY IN THE WORLD CUP DESPITE THE CONFLICT INVOLVING US
Islamic Republic of Iran Football Federation President Mehdi Taj during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Group B match between England and IR Iran at Khalifa International Stadium. (Photo by Harold Cunningham – FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)
Taj’s comments referenced a trip he made to the FIFA Congress in Vancouver last week. Canada, like the United States, designates the IRGC as a terrorist organization, and Taj’s visa was canceled mid-flight and he was forced to leave the country.
“We need a guarantee there, for our trip, that they have no right to insult the symbols of our system, especially the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps,” he said in Tehran on Tuesday.
“This is something they should pay close attention to. If there is such a guarantee and responsibility is clearly assumed, then an incident like the one in Canada will not happen again.”
TRUMP’S ENVOY ASKS FIFA TO REPLACE IRAN WITH ITALY IN THE 2026 WORLD CUP: REPORT
Secretary of State Marco Rubio says no person affiliated with the IRGC will be allowed to enter US soil. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP)
An envoy for President Donald Trump reportedly asked FIFA in April to replace Iran with Italy at the 2026 World Cup.
US special envoy Paolo Zampolli suggested the idea to FIFA president Gianni Infantino.
“I confirm that I have suggested to Trump and Infantino that Italy replace Iran in the world cup. “I am a native of Italy and it would be a dream to see the Azzurri in a tournament organized in the United States,” Zampolli told the Financial Times. “With four titles, they have the pedigree to justify their inclusion.”
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The Financial Times reported that the United States made the suggestion in part to help improve relations between Trump and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
