TIJUANA, Mexico (AP) 鈥� Iran defender Ehsan Hajsafi criticized soccer’s governing body after the team arrived in Mexico on Sunday with some members of their entourage still lacking U.S. visas, before three World Cup group matches in the United States later this month.
The team’s participation in the World Cup, jointly hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada, has been complicated by . Problems with processing visas earlier led Iran to move its training base from Tucson, Arizona, to Tijuana, Mexico, which is on the .
鈥淔irst of all, we鈥檙e very happy that the team has finally arrived, and we鈥檙e delighted about that,鈥� Hajsafi said. “Thank God, the team鈥檚 condition is very good.
鈥淲ith everything that happened, visas were eventually issued. Personally, however, I do have a complaint about FIFA. Why did it take so long? As far as I understand, visas were issued only to the players and a few members of the coaching staff.鈥�
Some members of Iran’s entourage are before games in Los Angeles and Seattle. Those include the Iranian Football Federation鈥檚 secretary-general, Hedayat Mombeini, and its vice president, Mehdi Mohammad Nabi.
鈥淯nfortunately, several key members of our coaching staff, whose roles are very important within the team, were not granted visas,鈥� Hajsafi said. “That includes the team manager, the executive director and the media director, all of whom play very important roles.
鈥淔rom here, I would like to ask FIFA to address this issue so that, God willing, the situation can be resolved in the coming days.鈥�
Iran had been training in the Turkish city of Antalya. The team flew directly to Tijuana, Mexico, which is just south of San Diego, on a private jet from the Mediterranean city鈥檚 airport.
Hajsafi was the first player to exit the plane with markings for German charter airline USC, which arrived at about 5:05 a.m. He led the team, dressed in blue blazers over white T-shirts, through a brief security check with Mexican officials and dogs before boarding a bus.
The bus stopped briefly at the entrance to the Tijuana airport, where around 20 or so Iran fans waved flags.
Iran plays its first two games in Inglewood, California, against New Zealand on June 15, and Belgium six days later, then heads to Seattle to face Egypt on June 26. Iran and the U.S. could meet in the round of 32 on July 3 in Arlington, Texas, if both teams come second in their groups.
In March, U.S. President Donald Trump had from participating in the tournament, saying he didn鈥檛 think it was 鈥渁ppropriate鈥� and raising concerns over players鈥� 鈥渓ife and safety.鈥� A day later, Iran鈥檚 national team , saying 鈥渘o one can exclude鈥� it from playing.
Iran on Monday, including 17 home-based players whose clubs haven鈥檛 played since February because of the war. Star forward Sardar Azmoun was dropped in March, reportedly because of a social media post that angered Iranian authorities during the war.
Iran鈥檚 sports minister said in March that it would 鈥渘ot be possible鈥� for the team to participate in the World Cup, but the republic鈥檚 soccer federation said in May that it was moving ahead with a team. The federation that all players and staff be granted visas, including those who had military service in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
___
AP World Cup coverage:
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
