Visa Crisis Confuses Iran National Team Before World Cup Kickoff

The Iranian national team arrived in the Mexican city of Tijuana in preparation for participating in the World Cup amid a diplomatic crisis that caused discontent among the Iranian delegation, after delays in the issuance of U.S. visas for players and technical staff, while several administrative staff members were completely denied visas.

Coach Amir Ghalenoei expressed his anger upon the team's arrival, stating that the team should have arrived a week earlier to acclimate to the 12-hour time difference. He pointed out that the human and ethical aspects were not considered in dealing with the Iranian delegation.

The team captain, Ehsan Hajsafi, also expressed his dissatisfaction with the delay, emphasizing that the team is fully prepared to compete and advance from the group stage.

The Iranian national team will be based in Tijuana throughout the tournament, despite playing all its matches in the United States. They will face New Zealand in Los Angeles on June 15, then Belgium in the same city on June 21, before concluding the group stage against Egypt in Seattle on June 26. This is the first World Cup hosted by a country involved in a direct conflict with one of the participating teams.

For its part, the Iranian Football Federation described the incident as a "political interference in sports," while the Iranian embassy in Turkey confirmed that 15 administrators and officials did not receive entry visas, calling on FIFA to hold the United States accountable for what it considered a violation of tournament regulations. Meanwhile, the administration of the U.S. president stated that the visa system would not...