Soccer-Iran to attend World Cup draw after boycott threat over visa issues

While Iran had applied for nine visas for their delegation, Iranian soccer federation (FFIRI) spokesman Amir Mehdi Alavi was quoted as saying that the U.S. had granted four visas, including head coach Amir Ghalenoei. Mehdi Taj, president of the FFIRI, was not granted a visa.

An Iranian delegation will attend Friday's 2026 World Cup draw after initially saying they would boycott the ceremony in Washington over visa issues, media reports said on Thursday. While Iran had applied for nine visas for their delegation, Iranian soccer federation (FFIRI) spokesman Amir Mehdi Alavi was quoted as saying that the U.S. had granted four visas, including head coach Amir Ghalenoei.

Mehdi Taj, president of the FFIRI, was not granted a visa. The United States has long-standing strict visa restrictions on Iranians for political and security reasons.

But FFIRI have now decided to send Ghalenoei and Omid Jamali, the head of the federation's international relations department, to attend the draw on Friday, local media reports said. The FFIRI could not be immediately reached for a comment.

Iran will play in their fourth straight World Cup finals when the tournament takes place in the United States, Canada and Mexico starting June 11.

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