NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
The Iranian soccer federation has a bleak outlook on participating in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, as the U.S.-Israeli joint strikes against the country entered the fourth day on Tuesday.
The tournament, which is being hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada later this summer, has Iran scheduled to kick off its Group G schedule in June in Los Angeles, California.
But President Donald Trump doesn’t care if Iran decides to pull out of the tournament later this year.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM
Mehdi Taremi of Iran celebrates after scoring a goal during the 2026 FIFA World Cup Asian Qualifiers Group A game between Iran and Uzbekistan at Azadi Stadium on March 25, 2025, in Tehran, Iran. (Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu)
“I really don’t care,” Trump told Politico on Tuesday when asked about Iran’s participation in the World Cup. “I think Iran is a very badly defeated country. They’re running on fumes.”
Iran was the first team to qualify for the World Cup, yet FIFA says that it will continue to monitor the situation.
“What is certain is that after this attack, we cannot be expected to look forward to the World Cup with hope,” Iran’s football federation president Mehdi Taj told sports portal Varzesh3 on Sunday. “The US regime has attacked our homeland, and this is an incident that will not go unanswered.”
President Donald Trump previously mentioned that athletes, staff members and family members would receive an exemption from countries on the banned list to enter the U.S. for the tournament. However, with attacks intensifying in the Middle East, that could change leading up to the tournament.
And there’s even a chance these two teams would face each other in a World Cup elimination game if they both finish second in their respective groups. And that game would be played in Dallas.
Iran fans cheer ahead of the FIFA World Cup 2026 AFC Asian Qualifiers Group A third round match between Qatar and Iran at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha, Qatar, on June 5, 2025. (Noushad Thekkayil/NurPhoto)
Since the U.S. and Israel strike on Saturday, Iran has responded by firing missiles and drones at the latter as well as at regional countries that host U.S. allies or military bases, including Bahrain and Qatar.
The strikes killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as well as other senior officials – Defense Council secretary Ali Shamkhani, armed forces chief of staff Abdolrahim Mousavi, and commander-in-chief of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Mohammad Pakpour.
While the men’s team doesn’t know what their World Cup future holds, the Iranian women’s soccer team made a statement on Monday during the opening match of the Women’s Asian Cup, as they refused to sing while their national anthem played over the speakers at Cbus Super Stadium on the Gold Coast.
The players were in their customary line before their match against South Korea when the Iranian national anthem began to play. The women, looking straight ahead and barely moving, were stoic as it appeared there were jeers from the crowd. Later, applause erupted from those in attendance following the 3-0 South Korea victory.
President Donald Trump looks on as he meets with the White House Task Force on the FIFA World Cup 2026 in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, D.C., Nov. 17, 2025. (Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters)
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Iran’s manager, Marziyeh Jafari, was also seen smiling as she looked upon her players’ silence from the sidelines.
After Iran’s World Cup opener, they are scheduled to face Belgium in Los Angeles on June 21 and Egypt in Seattle on June 26.
Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Related Article
