Is Iran's World Cup journey still viable given the ban on competing in "hostile countries"?

Written by Han Bing On March 27 local time, Iran faced Nigeria in a friendly match in Antalya, Turkey, resulting in a 1-2 defeat. Taremi scored a goal after Iran trailed 0-2. Although World Cup participation remains uncertain and Iran's domestic league has been halted for a month, the game against Nigeria shows that Iran's World Cup preparations are continuing systematically.

On March 27 and 31, Iran played friendly matches against Nigeria and Costa Rica respectively in Antalya, Turkey. Originally planned as a four-team tournament in Amman, Jordan involving Jordan, Nigeria, Costa Rica, and Iran, it was relocated due to the Middle East crisis. Iran's football association successfully persuaded Jordan, Nigeria, and Costa Rica to move the event to Antalya. This move aimed to demonstrate that Iran is still preparing normally for the World Cup, unaffected by the war.

Iran's head coach Galeno called up 35 players for the March national team training camp, including 10 overseas players. Captain and forward Taremi (Olympiacos, Greek Super League), Jahanbakhsh (Dender, Belgian Pro League), Mohbi (Rostov, Russian Premier League), and Golizadeh (Lech Poznań, Polish Ekstraklasa) were selected. The squad also included a previously unknown naturalized player—Eckert, a winger born in Germany currently playing for Standard Liège (Belgian Pro League). The 29-year-old Eckert is of Iranian and Spanish Galician descent, holding dual German and Spanish citizenship. His aunt is the famous Iranian actress Anahita Dargahi.

Additionally, key midfielders Ezatolahi (Al Wasl, UAE Pro League) and Cheshmi (Esteghlal Tehran) withdrew due to injuries, while overseas players Hosseini and Azmoun were not selected.

The journey for Iran's March friendly matches was arduous. On March 21, 23 domestic players, coaching staff, and support team traveled from Tehran via Tabriz in two buses, stopping at several points for rest, taking 14 hours to reach the Turkish border. They then switched buses to Van and flew to Antalya. The total journey covered 1400 km and took nearly 24 hours, whereas a direct flight from Tehran to Antalya typically takes less than 3 hours.

Galeno stated that Iran will prepare for the World Cup with a mix of experienced and younger players. In the March squad, two 36-year-old veterans, Hayisafi and Rezaian, returned. Alongside former Eredivisie Golden Boot winner Jahanbakhsh and midfielder Torabi, 18 of the 35 players are over 30 years old. Additionally, forwards like Mahroudi and midfielders like Razaghinia were included for development.

Not only are Iran's preparations proceeding normally, but Iran's football association and sports authorities are preliminarily discussing restarting the Iranian Premier League at an appropriate time. The football association aims to complete the remaining 7 rounds (62 matches) within 40 days from April 11 to May 21. Plans involve concentrating the 16 teams nationwide in Tehran, along with nearby stadiums in Arak, Qazvin, and Karaj. After the league ends on May 22, Iran will begin final World Cup preparations, with the football association already contacting potential friendly match opponents.

Given the current Middle East war situation, restarting the league may be challenging, but normalizing football is a widespread hope in Iran. The football association is actively handling post-war arrangements for foreign players leaving the league. Foreign players like Albania's Asani and Lushkya, Uzbekistan's Uronov and Sergeyev have requested contract termination, but the association prefers loan arrangements to facilitate their return when conditions stabilize. Overall, the association hopes the league won't be abruptly terminated by war, as most national team players come from the domestic league and need matches to maintain form.

However, a recent statement from Iran's Sports Ministry has jeopardized the football association's efforts. On March 26, the Sports Ministry banned Iranian clubs and national teams from competing in "hostile countries," including Saudi Arabia. This means Tabriz Tractor cannot participate in the AFC Champions League Elite West Asia quarter-finals in Jeddah in April, and Iran's participation in the World Cup in the United States in June is uncertain. Although Mexico has offered to host Iran's group matches, a simple solution would be swapping Iran (Group A) with South Korea (Group G), but FIFA has yet to confirm Iran's qualification or possible adjustments.

Given that the Middle East crisis shows signs of decreasing intensity and moving toward peace negotiations, Iranian football may not be entirely without hope.