Iran will not take part in the FIFA World Cup after the United States killed its Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, Iran’s sports minister Ahmad Donyamali said.
“The United States assassinated our leader,” Donyamali told state television on Wednesday. “Under these circumstances, we cannot participate in the World Cup.”
Security fears raise doubts over Iran’s World Cup presence
The United States will co-host the FIFA World Cup with Canada and Mexico. However, all of Iran’s group-stage matches are scheduled in American cities, including Los Angeles and Seattle.
The United States and Israel began military strikes against Iran on February 28. The conflict has killed 1,255 people within the first 12 days. Iranian officials say more than 12,000 others have been wounded.
Tehran has responded with waves of missiles and drones targeting Israel, US military bases across the Middle East, and regional infrastructure.
“Our children are not safe, and the conditions for participation simply do not exist,” Iran’s sports minister Ahmad Donyamali said.
He added that hostile actions against Iran had forced the country into two wars within the past eight or nine months and led to thousands of deaths. “Because of this, we certainly cannot take part,” he said.
This is the first time an Iranian government official has spoken about the country’s participation in the FIFA World Cup. The comments came after United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran on February 28. Since then, Iranian officials had not publicly addressed the issue.
Last week, the head of the Iran Football Federation also questioned the team’s participation but stopped short of confirming a boycott.
FIFA says Iran welcome at World Cup as Trump backs participation
“If the World Cup is held under these conditions, who would send their national team there?” Taj said on Iranian state television.
Earlier, Gianni Infantino said Iran would be welcome to play in the FIFA World Cup. He made the remarks after meeting Donald Trump to discuss the upcoming tournament during the ongoing Middle East conflict.
Infantino said Trump confirmed that Iran’s national team is welcome to compete. The World Cup will be co-hosted by the United States, Mexico, and Canada in June and July.
“We also discussed the situation in Iran,” Infantino wrote on Instagram after the meeting.
He added that Trump again stressed that the Iranian team could participate in the tournament in the United States.
Iran earlier became the first nation to qualify for the World Cup, which runs from June 11 to July 19.
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