Iraq Continues World Cup Preparations: Spain Test Then Farewell to Europe Towards Chicago

The Iraqi national team continues its preparation program in Spain in anticipation of the 2026 World Cup, which will be hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

The current training camp will continue until June 5th, before the Lions of Mesopotamia delegation flies directly to Chicago, USA, to complete the preparations.

According to the schedule, Iraq will play an anticipated friendly match against Spain next Thursday in the city of La Coruña, and just 24 hours later, the delegation will depart to Chicago to face Venezuela in the last friendly test before the World Cup competitions begin, where the team awaits a tough group that includes France and Norway alongside a third team.

Player Marco Faraj spoke through the Iraqi Football Association's account, saying: "The friendly match against Andorra gave us a valuable opportunity to participate and regain match sensitivity, increase physical fitness, and enhance understanding between old and new players. It was an important step in the preparation plan." 

He added about facing Spain: "Playing against one of the best teams in the world makes us very happy, but at the same time, it's a very difficult and beneficial test before the start of the World Cup."

Regarding the expected hot weather in the tournament, he commented: "I think the weather will be in our favor. This might not apply to me 100%, but most players are used to high temperatures through the Iraqi, Saudi, and Qatari leagues. Personally, I started adapting to these conditions after years with the national team, having played in Basra, the UAE, and Kuwait during the Gulf 26, and now I feel the importance of adapting to playing under these conditions."

For his part, defender Maytham Jabbar said: "Against Bolivia, the dream of qualifying was controlling us, and thank God it was achieved. Now our goal has changed; we did not come to America just to be a number, but to represent Iraq in the best way and raise its flag high, and all players realize the magnitude of the responsibility."

Regarding the camp atmosphere, he explained: "The location is far from the city and provides us with excellent calm and focus, which helps us a lot in training. The match against Spain will be a real rehearsal before the World Cup, and we will try to benefit from it as much as possible."

The Lions of Mesopotamia had opened their friendlies with a victory over Andorra last Friday with a clean goal scored by Ali Youssef in the 20th minute.

This victory gave the team an important morale boost before facing La Roja on Thursday in La Coruña, which is the last stop in Europe before heading to Chicago and concluding preparations with a match against Venezuela.