FIFA’s Gianni Infantino confirms Donald Trump has welcomed Iran to compete in the 2026 World Cup despite US-Iran war tensions and military conflict.
Donald Trump And FIFA President Make Final Call on Iran’s Participation In 2026 World Cup Amid US Iran War Tensions (Image Source: X)
In a big moment for international sports diplomacy, FIFA President Gianni Infantino has revealed that the Iran national team is definitely "welcome" to take part in the 2026 FIFA World Cup after a top-level conference with Donald Trump. The declaration made by Infantino on his Instagram account on Wednesday, March 11, 2026, comes at a time when geopolitics has never been so tense. The US President's pledge is a necessary assurance for the participation of "Team Melli" even in the face of a possible US-Iran war and the continuing military conflicts in the Middle East, given that only 93 days are left for the tournament to begin.
The Iranian national football team was under a cloud of uncertainty after the military tensions that were escalated by US and Israeli air strikes at the end of February. But the President of FIFA, Gianni Infantino, stated that during his conversation with the US President, Donald Trump, the President repeated his call for the tournament to be inclusive.
“President Trump reiterated that the Iranian team is, of course, welcome to compete in the tournament in the United States.”
Another topic of this discussion was the final arrangements of the expanded 48-team tournament. Infantino highlighted the fact that the FIFA World Cup 2026 is required "now more than ever" as a means of uniting. After getting this approval from the Trump government, FIFA has been able to sidestep a very complicated situation that would have resulted if a country, which has qualified for the tournament, were not allowed to enter the host country.
As far as the US government is concerned, this step is indicative of a sports, politics divide where the latter remains the narrative of US, Iran war and the former represents a separate sphere.
Even though Trump says Iran is welcome, having their team here means security will be tighter than ever. Team Melli’s lined up to play all three group games in the US: Los Angeles and Seattle, to be exact. They face New Zealand at SoFi Stadium on June 15, then take on Belgium and Egypt. Security experts say these matches will probably be some of the most heavily guarded in World Cup history. It’s all about keeping the players safe and making sure any protests don’t turn into something worse.
Also Read: Bam Adebayo Drops 83 Points, Surpasses Kobe Bryant For Second-Highest Scoring Game in NBA History
