Trump's 'inappropriate' Iran welcome

The United States president stated one thing and then the other last Thursday regarding the Asian country's nonparticipation in the upcoming FIFA World Cup in June, amid instability caused by the ongoing war between both nations.

Donald Trump expanded on comments published the previous Wednesday by the President of the International Federation of Association Football, Gianni Infantino, on his social media channels following a conversation with the US leader, in which it was stated that the football team would be warmly received in the country to compete in the World Cup.

"The Iran national football team is welcome at the World Cup, but I really don't believe it is appropriate for them to be there, for their own life and safety," Trump added in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social.

Iran is one of the 48 teams that have qualified for the tournament, which will be staged across three host nations — the United States, Canada and Mexico. However, the Asian side are scheduled to play their three group-stage matches against Belgium, Egypt and New Zealand in US cities, two of them in Los Angeles and one in Seattle.

Trump's initial remarks and Infantino's public announcement came hours after Iran's Sports Minister, Ahman Donyamali, ruled out the national team's participation in the tournament in a televised interview with the German news agency DPA, stating, "After the corrupt government killed our leader, there are no conditions that would allow us to take part in the World Cup." The minister was referring to the death of Iran's leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, following joint strikes by the United States and Israel that triggered the war now affecting the Middle East.

Donyamali added that "we definitely have no possibility of such participation." Thus, after two days, Trump's message now introduces a nuance to the initial comments he conveyed to the FIFA president, in which, despite the instability, the Republican leader had assured that Iranian players and coaches would be welcome. There has so far been no official statement from the White House on the matter, nor have Trump's remarks about concerns for 'their own life and safety' been clarified.

The Iranian Football Federation said last week that the United States should lose its hosting rights for the tournament, and FIFA has yet to outline how it would respond if Iran ultimately withdraws from the World Cup. Several options are being considered, including giving priority to Asian teams that narrowly missed qualification behind Iran, Iraq and the United Arab Emirates.

However, other possibilities remain, including FIFA deciding not to replace any team. National federations are expected to exert pressure depending on the governing body's decision, which in any case would likely impose significant sanctions on Iran if it does not participate, both financial and sporting.

Iraq has requested postponement of a play-off, scheduled for 31 March against the winner of the Bolivia–Suriname match, due to difficulties for players leaving the country amid the war in the Middle East. If FIFA were to award qualification to Iraq, they would not need to play that play-off. Another possibility would be to turn to the United Arab Emirates, which lost the Asian play-off against Iraq for a place in that match.

If Iraq were chosen to replace Iran, the UAE would play the play-off against the winner of Bolivia versus Suriname. However, anything is possible. FIFA has the authority to make decisions and is still examining the options, given that the situation is changing. "Basically, we take it day by day and at some point we will reach a resolution. And the World Cup will go ahead, obviously. The World Cup is too big, and we hope that all those who have qualified will be able to participate," said FIFA CEO Heimo Schirgi.