US-Iran Peace Deal: A 'Golden Chance' for Iran's Football Team at World Cup 2026?

Iran's football team enters the 2026 World Cup campaign under the shadow of a conflict with host nation the United States. From the start of the tournament, they have suffered 'collateral damage' through tightened visa conditions and numerous logistical hurdles. However, a peace deal just signed between Washington and Tehran is opening up positive signals for 'Team Melli'.

While World Cup history has seen host nations at odds with other countries (such as Argentina during the 1978 'Dirty War'), there has never been a case where a participating team was at war with the host, as is the case with Iran in the US today. The conflict erupted on February 28, a temporary ceasefire took effect on April 8, and a peace agreement was signed this week, but tensions remain simmering.

The story began in March, when US President Donald Trump declared on Truth Social that the Iranian team was welcome but 'don't believe they should be in the US for their own lives and safety.' By June 5, the Iranian players finally received visas — just 10 days before their opening match against New Zealand in Los Angeles — and were forced to leave the US after each game to return to their base in Mexico. Iran-US political analyst Negar Mortazavi called this 'excessive hostility' targeting Team Melli.

In that context, head coach Amir Ghalenoei moved the team's base from Arizona (US) to Tijuana (Mexico) at the last minute. The US then demanded the team leave its territory within hours of the final whistle. But things began to change when a peace memorandum was signed on the evening of Wednesday, June 17.

Mortazavi, in an interview with Al Jazeera, said, 'With a peace deal, everything can change. We can see President Trump's statements about Iran have shifted significantly. He suddenly talks about better relations, which could certainly extend to sports.'

A first positive sign was the US quickly granting a multiple-entry visa to midfielder Mehdi Torabi after his visa expired following the New Zealand match. However, political scholar Niki Akhavan warned that Trump might abandon the deal under pressure from hardline anti-Iran factions in the Republican Party, pro-Israel groups, and Democrats. 'But in the best-case scenario, granting the visa to Torabi is a sign of US flexibility in fulfilling its responsibilities as host nation.'

Despite the optimistic signals, Iran announced it would file a complaint with FIFA on June 19 after the country's football federation said a request to enter the US two days before the match against Belgium was denied. 'Despite submitting a preparation schedule in advance, the Iranian national team continues to face restrictions imposed by the organizers,' a federation spokesman said.

Scholar Akhavan stressed, 'You are actively disadvantaging a team. The whole idea of the World Cup is that everyone is equal on the pitch, but the US actions so far contradict that. I just hope the impact of this deal is that the US fulfills its responsibilities and we see a change.'

Akhavan also suggested that FIFA could have put more pressure on Washington. 'Hopefully, now that a deal is in place, FIFA President Gianni Infantino can use it as leverage to make peace part of the World Cup agenda. He once awarded the FIFA Peace Award to Mr. Trump. Let's see if they can turn those symbolic gestures into tangible benefits for the Iranian team.'