London, England – FIFA is facing the prospect of finding a replacement team to participate in the 2026 World Cup after Iran announced its refusal to participate due to recent political and military tensions with the United States.
The next edition of the World Cup will be held in North America with 48 participating teams. It will be hosted by the United States, Mexico, and Canada.
These developments come in the wake of US-Israeli airstrikes targeting Iran, which killed the country’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and destroyed parts of the capital, Tehran.
If Iran officially withdraws, FIFA will have to choose a replacement team to join the group that includes Belgium, Egypt and New Zealand.
The Mirror reveals a surprise regarding the UAE national team’s participation in the 2026 World Cup
According to the British newspaper “Mirror”, FIFA regulations stipulate that the replacement team is usually chosen from one of two options: either the team that finished second in the relevant qualifying group, or the highest-ranked team from the same continent that did not qualify for the tournament.
The newspaper indicated that among the scenarios being considered was giving the UAE national team the opportunity to participate, after it had been one of the teams close to qualifying in the Asian qualifiers, before losing to Iraq in the World Cup qualifying play-off.
Iraq is scheduled to face the winner of the Bolivia-Suriname match in the World Cup qualifying playoff. However, some reports suggest that Iraq might be awarded direct qualification instead of Iran, with the UAE then having to play in the playoff.
The option of a three-team group stage, with Belgium, Egypt, and New Zealand competing against each other, remains on the table. However, this scenario could complicate the tournament format, especially given that the best third-placed teams would advance to the knockout stages.
For his part, FIFA President Gianni Infantino met with US President Donald Trump, confirming that he had received assurances that the Iranian national team was welcome to participate in the tournament despite the political tensions.
Infantino said: “During the discussions, President Trump confirmed that the Iranian national team is of course welcome to participate in the World Cup that will be held in the United States”.
In contrast, Iranian Sports Minister Ahmad Doniamale stressed his country’s refusal to participate, saying in televised remarks: “Given what happened and the assassination of our leader, we cannot participate in the World Cup under any circumstances. Two wars have been imposed on us in recent months, and thousands of victims have fallen. Under these circumstances, there is no safe environment to participate in the tournament”.
