The aftermath of the U.S.-Iran air strike and the possibility of a World Cup limping operation for the first time in 76 years

*This content was translated by AI.

The possibility of crippling the 2026 FIFA 2026 FIFA North and Central America World Cup, which is 100 days away, is also raised as military tensions rise across the Middle East, including Iran's retaliatory attacks, over a massive U.S.-Israel military operation targeting Iran.

The World Cup, which will open in June, will be co-hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada, because all three of Iran's group games will be held in Inglewood and Seattle, USA, so it may not be possible for the Iranian national soccer team to participate in the tournament normally, such as Iran's withdrawal or the U.S. refusal to enter the Iranian team.

The Athletic, a U.S. media outlet, said on the 3rd (Korea time), "The Middle East is in a state of uncertainty as the U.S. and Israel continue to attack Iran," adding, "This raises questions about whether the Iranian national soccer team will be able to participate in the World Cup or whether the U.S. government, which has already banned Iranian citizens from entering the country, will restrict the participation of the Iranian national team."

In fact, Mehdi Taz, president of the Iranian Football Association, said in an interview with local state-run media, "There is a lot of possibility of a 'boycott' for the 2026 2026 FIFA North and Central America World Cup, as he said, "We will not be able to have hope for the World Cup after this attack (from the U.S. and Israel)." On the contrary, the US government has already refused to issue visas to some Iranian delegations ahead of the 2026 FIFA North and Central America World Cup draw ceremony in December last year.

Naturally, attention is focused on how Iran will fill the vacancy if it is finally confirmed that it will not participate in the World Cup. According to the 2026 FIFA World Cup regulations, if a team does not participate in the tournament, such as withdrawal, it can be followed up at FIFA's discretion. Largely, there are two options: find another national team to replace Iran and maintain the 48-nation system to run the tournament, or host the tournament under a 47-nation system excluding Iran.

If the World Cup is held in a 47-nation system without an Iranian substitute team, the tournament will be crippled without some participating teams in 76 years since the 1950 tournament, when as many as four teams withdrew before and after the World Cup draw ceremony. In Group G, which includes Iran, only three teams from Belgium, Egypt and New Zealand will play in the group stage.

In this case, not only the first and second place in each group, but also the eight teams with good performance among the third place in each group will reach the round of 32 tournaments. In the process of comparing the performance of the third-place teams in the group, points and differences are considered, and the third-place team in Group G without Iran is at a disadvantage in comparing performance as it plays one game less than the third-place teams in other groups. Therefore, the rules of the other group's third-place teams can be changed rapidly by comparing their performance with the lowest team in each group except for their performance against each other. This can have a significant impact on each team's plan to operate the group stage of the finals.

There is also a plan to find an Iranian alternative team and run the tournament. However, since there is no regulation on the replacement team, it is necessary to discuss which team will be given the right to play in the World Cup. For now, Iraq, ahead of the Intercontinental Playoff (PO) Pass 2 Final, or the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which failed to advance to the intercontinental PO after failing to advance to the fifth qualifying round of the World Cup Asian qualifying round earlier, is considered a likely replacement team. If Iraq, ahead of the intercontinental PO, plays in the finals instead of Iran, it is expected that the opportunity may return to the winner of the Bolivia-Suri South match, which is scheduled to face Iraq in the intercontinental PO Pass 2 Final. Although it is FIFA's discretion, China's alternative participation in dreaming of a "slight possibility" has virtually no justification.

However, the big problem is that it is unknown when Iran's official position on whether to participate in the World Cup will come out, and the later that period, the later the FIFA-level countermeasures will be prepared. There is no deadline for participating in the tournament, and even if there is a deadline, there is no way to prevent the crippled operation of FIFA if the Iranian Football Association decides to withdraw its participation at the risk of penalties. The Athletic added, "For FIFA or alternative participating teams, preparation, contracts, and various consultations generally take months, and Iran's decision, in any form, is expected to be made relatively close to the tournament."

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*This content was translated by AI.