Iranian Football Federation (FFIRI) chief Mehdi Taj has said on Tuesday that FIFA must guarantee the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) will not be insulted by the United States (US) during Iran’s national team travels to the country for the World Cup in June.
The demand follows an incident last week in which an FFIRI delegation, including Taj, turned back from the Canadian border over what they described as disrespectful treatment by immigration officials during an attempt to attend the FIFA Congress in Vancouver.
Canada’s immigration minister later confirmed to the parliament that Taj’s visa had been cancelled while he was in the air, citing his links to the IRGC. Canada designated the IRGC a terrorist entity in 2024, five years after the US did the same.
Speaking on the sidelines of a rally in Tehran, Taj told state broadcaster IRIB, “We need a guarantee there, for our trip, that they have no right to insult the symbols of our system — especially the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. This is something they must pay serious attention to. If there is such a guarantee and the responsibility is clearly assumed, then an incident like what happened in Canada will not happen again.”
FIFA Secretary-General Mattias Grafstrom wrote to FFIRI expressing regret at the “inconvenience and disappointment” the delegation experienced in Canada and invited them to Zurich on May 20 to discuss World Cup preparations.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said last week that Washington DC had no objections to Iranian players attending the tournament, but made clear that anyone with ties to the IRGC will not be admitted into the country. Taj himself served as a high-ranking IRGC official in Isfahan Province before moving into football administration.
Taj warned that anything short of firm guarantees could see the Iranian delegation turned away at the US border, as happened in Canada.
“We are going to the World Cup, for which we qualified, and our host is Fifa — not Mr Trump or America,” he said. “If they accept hosting us, then they must also accept that they must not insult our military institutions in any way. Because if they do, then naturally it could create the same kind of situation that happened in Canada.”
Iran is scheduled to play two group stage matches in Los Angeles and one in Seattle during the tournament, which runs from June 11 to July 19 across the US, Canada and Mexico.
Iran’s participation has been in doubt since US and Israeli air strikes hit the Islamic Republic in late February, and the country’s top-flight domestic league remains suspended, with home-based players in a training camp in Tehran.
Taj added that the federation hopes to arrange at least one friendly against a strong opponent in Turkiye, where Iran played matches against Nigeria and Costa Rica in late March.
