Iran team lands in Mexico amid US visa row

Iran’s FIFA World Cup 2026 football team have landed in Mexico amid an ongoing row over visas and access to the stadiums in the US where they are to play, reports BBC.

All three of Iran's group games are in the US, but the players and support staff have been told they have to fly in and out of the country on match day.

Iran says 15 other officials and support staff have been denied visas altogether, which an official has described as political interference in sport in its worst form.

The World Cup, jointly hosted by the US, Canada and Mexico, begins on 11 June, with Iran securing their place by finishing top of their qualification group in March 2025, almost a year before the US and Israel began attacks on the country.

This will be the first iteration of the World Cup to see a host nation receive the team of a country it is at war with.

The Iranian team landed in Tijuana early on Sunday morning local time. They will be based there after relocating the training base from the American city of Tucson, Arizona, in late May.

Iran is set to play all three of their group-stage matches in the United States, facing New Zealand and Belgium in Los Angeles before taking on Egypt in Seattle.

US officials said visas had been issued to all players and "necessary support staff" on Friday, 10 days before Iran's opening fixture in Los Angeles on 15 June.

According to Iranian state-linked media, 15 officials including the football federation chief, his deputy, and a media director are among those denied entry to the US.