Iran may boycott the 2026 FIFA World Cup following escalating tensions with the United States and Israel, according to the country’s Sports Minister, Ahmad Donyamali.
Donyamali disclosed in an interview with state television that the country was considering withdrawing from the global football tournament scheduled to be jointly hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada in 2026.
The development follows heightened geopolitical tensions after the reported assassination of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, in what Iranian authorities described as a joint military operation by the United States and Israel.
Iran later retaliated with strikes on U.S. military bases in the Middle East, further deepening the crisis between the countries.
Speaking on the possibility of Iran’s participation in the tournament, Donyamali said the country had no plans to take part under the prevailing circumstances.
“Since this corrupt government assassinated our leader, we have no conditions under which we can participate in the World Cup,” he said.
“In view of the malicious measures taken against Iran, two wars were forced upon us within eight or nine months and several thousand of our people were killed. Therefore, we definitely have no possibility of participating in this way.”
Iran had secured qualification for the 2026 tournament in March last year after finishing among the top two teams in Group A of the Asian qualifiers.
Despite earlier assurances from FIFA that preparations for the tournament were on course, Iran was absent at a planning summit for participating nations held recently in Atlanta.
If the country follows through with the threat, it would join a small group of nations that have previously boycotted the World Cup despite qualifying, including Uruguay, Turkey, India and France.
