"Great twist" on the risk of not attending the desperate World Cup "Not guaranteeing the safety of players"... Iran's 'No Dispatch of Enemies' Surprise Measures

*This content was translated by AI.

He is on the verge of missing the World Cup. The Iranian national soccer team is unlikely to be able to play in the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North Korea and the U.S. due to its administrative measures.

Major foreign media such as "The Times Israel" and "ESPN" reported on the 27th (Korea Standard Time) that "Iran's Ministry of Sports and Youth announced a measure to ban the dispatch of athletes to countries considered hostile."

According to local reports, Iran's Ministry of Sports and Youth stated, "We prohibit national and club team matches in hostile countries that cannot guarantee the safety of Iranian athletes until further notice." The move is interpreted as the aftermath of the Middle East war between the U.S.-Israel and Iran in February.

The Asian club competition was also directly hit. According to the ban, the round of 16 strongest teams of the AFC Champions League (ACLE) between Traktor SC (Iran) and Al Ahli (United Arab Emirates), which were scheduled to be held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia next month, will also be canceled.

"The Times Israel" said, "Iranian authorities are currently planning to ask the AFC to change the venue for the game. The Korea Football Association and each club are responsible for notifying the AFC of this matter and reallocating the venue of the game," he added.

The bigger problem is the impact this move will have on the World Cup. The Iranian government is strongly opposed to hosting the games in the United States, citing the situation of military attacks by Israel and the United States. Coincidentally, Iran was scheduled to play all three group games in the United States in a group with New Zealand, Belgium and Egypt at this World Cup.

According to Middle Eastern media such as 'Al Jazeera', Medytaz, president of the Iranian Football Association, said, "We are negotiating with FIFA to change the venue of the group league match to Mexico in the United States." However, FIFA President Gianni Infantino has drawn a line in Iran's attempt to change the venue, saying, "The tournament should proceed as scheduled."

U.S. President Donald Trump also raised the pressure earlier this month, saying, "I welcome the Iranian national team's entry, but given their lives and safety, it may not be appropriate to play in the United States."

The Iranian soccer community is also facing an unprecedented collapse internally. Iran moved its warm-up site from Jordan to Antalya, Turkiye, in the aftermath of the war. First of all, Iran is preparing to play against Nigeria and Costa Rica in Turkiye.

In particular, the departure of core power due to political controversy is serious. According to Middle Eastern media such as 'Al Jazeera', Sardar Azmun (31, Al Ahli), a leading striker who scored 57 A-match goals, was expelled from the national team by the government after a photo taken with the hostile UAE prime minister was released and ordered to seize assets. Reuters said Mehdi Taremi (Olympiacos) is also at the center of controversy over his expulsion after it was revealed that he recently exchanged uniforms with an Israeli player after a team match.

On top of that, six women's national team players and one staff member who recently participated in the 2026 AFC Women's Asian Cup in Australia refused to sing the national anthem and applied for asylum. "Iranian authorities strongly condemned them, defining them as traitors," The Times Israel added.

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*This content was translated by AI.