Iran national team coach Amir Ghalenoei was furious after his team was forced to leave the United States immediately after the match ended 2-2 against New Zealand.
Ghalenoei wants his team to be allowed to stay for a few hours before returning to Tijuana in Mexico so the players can get back in shape.
The Iranian squad arrived in the US and played a match the following day at 6:00 PM. However, shortly after the match, US authorities ordered them to leave that same night.
It is no wonder that Ghalenoei considered his team to be the most oppressed team
Iran's national team captain, Mehdi Taremi, echoed his coach's sentiments.
"This is not good for football because in the World Cup, we have to prepare ourselves as best as possible for the next match," Taremi was quoted as saying by the BBC .
According to Taremi, the Iranian national team could not be accompanied by the squad's support staff because the US refused to grant them visas.
Taremi explains this all calmly and even with a wry smile that depicts the resilience of Iranians in the face of problems.
Iran will return to Los Angeles to face Belgium on June 21 at 12 noon, and then to Seattle in Washington state, for their final Group G match against Egypt.
Should Iran qualify for the knockout stage, they would play in Seattle again if they win Group G, in Arlington if they finish second in Group G, and in East Rutherford if they finish third.
The distance between Tijuana and Seattle is 2,049 km, Tijuana and Arlington is 2,174 km, and Tijuana and East Rutherford is 4,459 km.
Imagine if Iran had qualified for the knockout stage, how tired the Iranian players would have been because they had to travel 24 hours back and forth between the cities, especially Rutheford, which is the equivalent distance from Biak in Papua.
Iran also complained that its World Cup ticket allocation was cancelled one night before the 2026 World Cup kickoff.
They urged FIFA to uphold the principles of neutrality and fairness. But FIFA could do nothing, citing its unwillingness to interfere with the US government's authority.
This series of events contradicts FIFA's determination to make the 2026 World Cup the most inclusive and most unifying World Cup for humanity.
