Iran has insisted that no one can exclude its national team from the upcoming FIFA World Cup later this year, responding to a warning by Donald Trump that Iranian players’ “life and safety” could be at risk if they participated in the tournament in the United States.
In a statement posted on social media on Thursday, the Iran national football team said the tournament is governed by FIFA and not by any individual country or leader.
The team also argued that if a host nation cannot guarantee the safety of participating teams, it should not be allowed to stage the competition.
“The World Cup is a historic and international event and its governing body is FIFA — not any individual, country,” the team said in the statement.
It added that Iran qualified for the tournament through “a series of decisive victories,” stressing that no one has the authority to exclude the national team from the global event.
Trump had earlier said that while Iran’s team would be welcome at the tournament, he believed it might not be appropriate for them to attend because of safety concerns.
“The Iran National Soccer Team is welcome to the World Cup, but I really don’t believe it is appropriate that they be there, for their own life and safety,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
The comments came amid tensions linked to the ongoing conflict involving the United States, Israel and Iran, which was triggered by military strikes on February 28.
The upcoming World Cup will be jointly hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Despite the tensions, Trump later posted another message emphasising that the event would be safe for players and fans from around the world.
“The United States of America looks very much forward to hosting the FIFA World Cup,” he wrote, adding that ticket sales were “through the roof.”
