Iran “has to” take part in the summer World Cup, FIFA President Gianni Infantino said on Wednesday.
“The Iranian team is coming for sure, yes,” the Associated Press cited Infantino as saying at CNBC’s Invest in America Forum, a one-day event that was held in Washington, D.C.
“We hope that by then, of course, the situation will be a peaceful situation. As I said, that would definitely help. But Iran has to come. Of course, they represent their people. They have qualified. The players want to play,” the FIFA president added.
The USA is co-hosting the World Cup with Canada and Mexico, with Iran scheduled to play two group-stage games in Inglewood, California, and one in Seattle.
The United States’ war against Iran that has now entered a fragile truce has raised doubts about the Iranian national team’s chances to travel to America.
“I went to see them. They are actually quite a good team as well,” Infantino went on to say, referring to his meeting with the players two weeks ago in Antalya, Turkey, according to AP.
“And they really want to play and they should play. Sports should be outside of politics now. OK we don’t live on the moon, we live on planet Earth. But you know if there is nobody else that believes in building bridges and in keeping them, you know, intact and together, well we are doing that job,” he said.
Egypt, New Zealand and Belgium comprise the rest of Iran’s group.
U.S. President Donald Trump on March 12, a little less than two weeks after the war had started, wrote on Truth Social, “The Iran National Soccer Team is welcome to The World Cup, but I really don’t believe it is appropriate that they be there, for their own life and safety. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” according to ESPN.
On March 2, Iran’s women’s football team refrained from singing their national anthem before a match against South Korea at the Asian Cup in Australia.
The players stood silently just three days after the war started, in an apparent show of solidarity with the thousands of Iranian protesters who were slaughtered by the Islamic Republic regime in February.
The incident led to several defections of the players and team staff after Iranian state-affiliated commentators described them as “wartime traitors” and urged authorities to deal with them “more severely,” according to The Guardian.
Trump called on social media to assist the women, offering them asylum in the United States.
On March 10, Australian Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke confirmed that five members of Iran’s national soccer team had been granted humanitarian visas, The Guardian reported at the time.
“They are welcome to stay in Australia. They are safe here, and they should feel at home here,” Burke told reporters at a press conference in Brisbane.
Eventually, only two Iranians remained in Australia, with London-based opposition outlet Iran International reporting that Iranian regime forces have threatened to harm the families of some of the national team players and staff if they do not return home.
