Iran says its World Cup team must leave US soil same day after matches

By AFP Today, 9:59 pm Edit

Iran's players get onboard a bus as they leave to Antalya Airport, southern Turkey, June 6, 2026, before departing to Tijuana, Mexico, for the World Cup soccer tournament. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

TIJUANA, Mexico — Iran’s World Cup squad has been notified they must enter and leave US soil on the same day as any match they must play in the United States, the country’s ambassador to Mexico said Saturday.

Due to the ongoing US-Israeli conflict with Tehran, Iran’s team is now based in Mexico, instead of their intended site in Tucson, Arizona.

“We can enter in the morning and we must leave the same day,” Iran’s envoy Abolfazl Pasandideh tells reporters.