The Iranian Minister of Sports hinted at the possibility of his country's national team not participating in the 2026 World Cup scheduled to be held in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, due to political tensions with the United States. He emphasized that the current circumstances might make it difficult for the Iranian team to travel to American soil to play in the tournament.

The minister stated in remarks reported by the media that thousands of Iranians were killed in the recent events, pointing out that this raises questions within Iran about the possibility of participating in a tournament held in a country accused of being involved in those attacks.

He added that the final decision regarding the participation of the Iranian national team has not been settled yet, but he emphasized that the government and sports authorities are carefully studying the situation in light of the current political and security developments.

The 2026 World Cup is scheduled to be held jointly in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, where the tournament will feature 48 teams for the first time in the competition's history.