US Secretary of State Marco Rubio says the US has not told the Iranian national team that it cannot play.By ReutersPublished On 24 Apr 202624 Apr 2026US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington has no objections to Iranian players participating in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, but he added the players will not be allowed to bring people with ties to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) with them.Since the United States-Israeli war on Iran began on February 28, Iran’s participation in this summer’s edition of FIFA’s global showpiece has been in doubt because all of the country’s group-stage matches are scheduled to be played in the United States.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list“Nothing from the US has told them they can’t come,” Rubio told reporters.“The problem with Iran would be not their athletes. It would be some of the other people they would want to bring with them, some of whom have ties to the IRGC. We may not be able to let them in, but not the athletes themselves,” Rubio said.“They can’t bring a bunch of IRGC terrorists into our country and pretend that they are journalists and athletic trainers,” Rubio added.Washington has designated the IRGC as a “foreign terrorist organisation”.US President Donald Trump, speaking alongside Rubio, added that his administration “would not want to affect the athletes”.The World Cup is set to begin on June 11 across the US, Mexico and Canada. Speculation about Iran’s participation has been rife, with officials from both Iran and the US weighing in.In a statement on Wednesday, however, Iran’s government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani said all necessary arrangements for the team’s participation in the tournament have been ensured by the Ministry of Sports and Youth. Advertisement …
