Published on 6/15/2026
The Iranian national football team’s delegation arrived in the American city of Los Angeles, amid strict security measures imposed around the team’s headquarters, in preparation for its match against New Zealand at the start of its 2026 World Cup campaign.
These developments come after a crisis in which Iran announced that the United States refused to grant visas to 15 members of its mission, forcing it to reside in Mexico and travel only on match days.
Read also
list of 2 itemsend of list
Iran’s national team is in the seventh World Cup group, along with Egypt, Belgium and New Zealand.
Due to the refusal of American visas to 15 members of the delegation, the Iranian delegation was forced to reside in the Mexican city of Tijuana and travel to Los Angeles only on match days.
In the same context, Iran hinted at the possibility of withdrawing from the matches or stopping them if any manifestations of political protest occurred inside the stands.
An emotional farewell
Video clips documented the gathering of dozens of Iranian and Mexican fans in front of the Iranian national team’s residence in the Mexican city of Tijuana, to bid farewell to the team before it traveled to Los Angeles in preparation for facing New Zealand.
The scenes showed a festive atmosphere and chants in support of the Iranian national team, while fans raised the flags of Iran and Mexico as an expression of solidarity between the fans of the two countries.
Footage also documented the exit of a number of members of the Iranian national team delegation from the camp headquarters to distribute official national team shirts to fans outside the training facilities, amid interaction and joy from those present.
The Iranian national team is scheduled to meet its New Zealand counterpart at the Los Angeles Stadium (Tuesday dawn, UTC) in the group stage of the World Cup, in light of the strict security measures surrounding the team following its arrival.
The 2026 World Cup, organized by the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) in the United States, Canada and Mexico, was officially launched in the period between June 11 and July 19, 2026, and 48 teams will compete for the first time, including 8 Arab teams.
