Who might substitute Iran on the World Cup after sport’s minister claims nation will not play
Iran’s sports minister has declared the nation cannot participate in the 2026 World Cup following airstrikes, leaving FIFA scrambling for replacement options including UAE and Iraq
Iran won’t play at the World Cup in the summer(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
FIFA could be racing against the clock to secure a replacement for Iran – after the nation declared “under no circumstances can we participate in the World Cup” following the US-Israeli airstrikes on their territory.
The tournament in North America is chiefly being hosted in the USA, and their political actions have created shockwaves throughout the footballing realm. The conflict resulted in the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Iran’s sports minister has outlined the nation’s intentions to boycott the World Cup, meaning FIFA must locate a new country to enter a group alongside Belgium, Egypt and New Zealand.
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Iran had qualified at the summit of their section in the Asian qualification framework, but world football’s governing body has multiple alternatives at their disposal.
The FIFA rulebook stipulates a substitute will emerge from: “A nominated alternate, often the direct runner-up from the relevant qualifying playoff or highest-ranked non-qualified team from that confederation.”
One remedy would be to fast-track the UAE into the tournament itself, given they concluded second to Iran in qualification.
Nevertheless, they were defeated by Iraq during the Asian confederation’s fixture that determined the intercontinental play-off, which is scheduled to occur in several weeks, reports the Mirror.
Iraq will face the winner of Bolivia and Suriname for a place at the World Cup, which has genuinely complicated the situation.
There is speculation of FIFA awarding Iraq an automatic berth in the tournament as Iran’s replacement – leaving the UAE to instead compete in the intercontinental play-off.
An unlikely solution for FIFA would be to stage a World Cup group with just three teams, leaving Belgium, Egypt and New Zealand to compete against each other.
The expanded tournament does mean that the best performing third-placed side will progress into the knockouts – but having a group with only three teams complicates that scenario.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino has met with US President Donald Trump and claimed he received assurances that Iran are welcome at the tournament despite the conflict in the Middle East.
He said: “During the discussions, President Trump reiterated that the Iranian team is, of course, welcome to compete in the tournament in the United States.”
Iran’s sports minister, Ahmad Donyamali, has unequivocally expressed their position as he took a swipe at the current US administration.
During a television interview, he stated: “Considering that this corrupt regime [the US] has assassinated our leader, under no circumstances can we participate in the World Cup.
“In view of the malicious measures taken against Iran, two wars were forced upon us within eight or nine months, and several thousand of our people were killed. Our children are not safe and, fundamentally, such conditions for participation do not exist.”
