Gianni Infantino flew to a Turkish resort, watched Iran beat Costa Rica 5-0, and left having done more for World Cup diplomacy than three months of press releases managed. The meeting between FIFA's president and Iranian federation officials in Antalya was the first face-to-face contact since the United States and Israel launched military strikes against Iran on February 28. By most accounts, it went well.
The Iranian federation's readout described Infantino promising he was "at your service, and if you need help, I will provide it" — including practical support for a pre-tournament training camp, likely back in Turkey over the coming weeks. That matters because Iran's domestic league has been suspended since the war began, leaving most players short of competitive football. The 2-1 loss to Nigeria and the Costa Rica win were the first serious action many of them had seen in weeks.
Mexico is off the table — and has been for a while
Tellingly, the Iranian federation's statement made no mention of moving games to Mexico. That idea was floated hard in early March, with government officials suggesting Iran couldn't travel to the US and FIFA should relocate their fixtures to the co-host. Infantino has shut it down every time it's come up. Last weekend he told a Mexican broadcaster there is no backup plan — only Plan A.
The commercial logic alone makes a venue switch almost impossible. FIFA has sold around 200,000 tickets across Iran's three group games. Flights, hotels, and broadcast deals are locked in. Moving cities at this stage would expose FIFA to compensation claims from fans and sponsors on a scale nobody wants to think about.
So Iran plays New Zealand on June 15 at the LA Rams' stadium in Inglewood, Belgium six days later at the same venue, and Egypt in Seattle on June 26. The squad is due at their Tucson training base — the Kino Sports Complex — no later than June 10.
The problems that haven't gone away
The political noise around this has been genuinely chaotic. Trump said he "really doesn't care" if Iran comes, then said players weren't safe, then promised they'd be treated like stars — sometimes within the same news cycle. Several Iranian federation officials, including president Mehdi Taj, were denied US visas after the World Cup draw in December. That hasn't been resolved.
Star striker Sardar Azmoun wasn't even in the squad for the Turkey warmups, reportedly excluded on orders from state authorities after he posted a photo greeting political leaders from the UAE. Both matches were played without supporters in the stadium — the second time in three World Cups that Iran fans have been kept out of pre-tournament games, the first being Austria in 2022.
During national anthems in Antalya, the Iran players held up children's backpacks and photos of war victims in protest against the US-backed strikes. Whatever happens on the pitch in June, this is not a team arriving in Los Angeles under normal circumstances.
Iran hasn't withdrawn its World Cup entry. The Tucson camp is being prepared. And Infantino flew home having been seen publicly backing their participation. For Group G odds — Belgium are the top seed, Iran and Egypt fight for the third-place scraps — the picture is at least clearer than it was a month ago. Whether it stays that way depends on events far outside football's control.
