Iran cannot participate in the 2026 World Cup after co-host, ​the U.S. launched airstrikes alongside Israel, Sports Minister Ahmad Donyamali said on Wednesday.

The attacks killed the Islamic Republic’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali ‌Khamenei, and triggered a region-wide conflict.

“Considering that this corrupt regime has assassinated our leader, under no circumstances can we participate in the World Cup,” the minister told state television.

The 48-team World Cup will be held in the U.S., Mexico and Canada from June 11 to July 19.

“Our children are not safe and, fundamentally, such conditions for participation do not exist,” Donyamali said.

“Given ​the malicious actions they have carried out against Iran, they have forced two wars on us over eight or nine months and have killed and martyred thousands of our people. Therefore, we certainly cannot have such a presence.”

More than 1,300 Iranian civilians have ⁠been killed since the U.S. and Israeli airstrikes began on February 28, according to Iran’s U.N. ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani.

IRAN DRAWN TO PLAY IN LA ​AND SEATTLE

Iran are grouped with Belgium, Egypt and New Zealand.

All three of their Group G matches are scheduled to take place in the U.S., two in Los ​Angeles and one in Seattle.

Iran, who dominated the Asian qualifying rounds to qualify for the tournament in March last year, was the only nation missing from a FIFA planning summit for World Cup participants held last week in Atlanta.

There was no immediate comment from the Iranian Football Federation or world soccer’s governing body FIFA.

FIFA regulations state that any team that ​withdraws from the tournament “no later than 30 days before the first match” will be fined at least 250,000 Swiss francs ($320,800).

“Disciplinary sanctions may include the expulsion ​of the participating member association concerned from subsequent FIFA competitions and/or the replacement of the participating member association with another member association,” FIFA’s regulations say.

“The FIFA Council or the ‌relevant committee ⁠may decide, in particular, to replace the member association in question with another association.”

Iran had selected Tucson’s sprawling Kino Sports Complex as the team’s base camp and 18 months of preparation hang in the balance with a potential economic hit in Arizona.

There is also the question of tickets to World Cup games involving Iran. Should Iran boycott the tournament, Iranian fans who bought tickets for eye-watering prices may be tempted to sell them on the huge resale market.

INFANTINO SAYS TRUMP WELCOMES IRAN ​TEAM

Earlier, FIFA President Gianni Infantino said ​he had met U.S. President Donald ⁠Trump, who told him he welcomed Iran’s participation in the World Cup.

Trump had previously said “I really don’t care” if Iran participated or not, but Infantino said he had a productive discussion with the president.

“During the discussions, President Trump reiterated that ​the Iranian team is, of course, welcome to compete in the tournament in the United States,” Infantino said.

A ​source in Tehran familiar ⁠with the matter said that as well as Iran’s decision not to attend the World Cup, warm-up games were not possible because of the war.

Earlier this week, Australia granted humanitarian visas to five Iranian women soccer players after they sought asylum, fearing persecution on their return home for their refusal to sing the national anthem at ⁠a Women’s ​Asian Cup match.

Trump had called on Australia to give asylum to members of the Iran ​women’s soccer team.

On Wednesday, Australian police helped two more members of the Iranian women’s soccer delegation slip their minders to claim asylum, but one has changed her mind and decided to go back to ​Iran, the country’s interior minister said.

-Reuters

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Angola have cancelled planned friendlies this month against Jordan and Iran, the Angolan Football Federation ​said in a statement.

They were due to ‌take on Jordan and Iran, who have both qualified for the World Cup in Canada, Mexico and the U.S ​later this year, in Dubai at the ​end of March.

“The aggravation of the current conflict ⁠in the Middle East and the consequent instability ​that is felt in the region meant a ​serious, prudent and responsible re-evaluation,” the statement said.

Angolan officials said they tried to seek an alternative for the match against ​Jordan but “after a deep and rigorous evaluation of ​the financial obligations involved, the required logistical and administrative effort ‌and ⁠the respective competitive benefit for the national team, it has been concluded that playing just one game would not rationally and strategically be justified”.

Angola said ​they were ​therefore cancelling ⁠plans to play in the March international window. The country did not qualify ​for the 2026 World Cup and will ​play ⁠their next competitive fixture in September when the group qualifiers for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations ⁠finals ​kick off.

They recently fired French ​coach Patrice Beaumelle and have yet to appoint a successor.

-Reuters

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FIFA President Gianni Infantino said on Wednesday that he met with United States President Donald Trump, who told him he welcomed Iran’s participation in the ​2026 Soccer World Cup, which will be co-hosted by the U.S., Mexico ‌and Canada.

Iran was the only nation missing from a FIFA planning summit for World Cup participants held last week in Atlanta, deepening questions over whether the country’s soccer team will compete ​on U.S. soil this summer amid an escalating regional war.

Trump told Politico ​earlier that he is not concerned about Iran’s participation, as they ⁠were a “very badly defeated country”.

“We also spoke about the current situation in Iran, ​and the fact that the Iranian team has qualified to participate in the FIFA ​World Cup 2026,” soccer’s world governing body, FIFA, boss Infantino said in a post on his official social media account.

“During the discussions, President Trump reiterated that the Iranian team is, of ​course, welcome to compete in the tournament in the United States.

“We all need ​an event like the FIFA World Cup to bring people together now more than ever, and ‌I ⁠sincerely thank the President of the United States for his support, as it shows once again that Football Unites the World.”

Iran secured a trip to a fourth successive World Cup by topping Group A in the third round of Asian qualifying ​last year, but Mehdi ​Taj, president of ⁠the Football Federation of the Islamic Republic of Iran, said the viciousness of the attacks by U.S. and Israeli forces did ​not augur well for the World Cup, to be held ​from June ⁠11 to July 19.

The Iranians were grouped with Belgium, Egypt and New Zealand in Group G. Their matches are scheduled to take place in the U.S., two in ⁠Los ​Angeles and one in Seattle.

If both the U.S. and ​Iran finish second in their respective groups, the two countries could meet in a July 3 elimination ​match in Dallas.

-Reuters

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