Iran’s national football team captain, Mehdi Taremi, has launched a blistering attack on FIFA and World Cup organizers, claiming they would prefer to see his country eliminated from the 2026 tournament.
Taremi’s outburst followed a dramatic and highly tense 1-1 draw against Egypt in Seattle—dubbed the ‘Pride Match’—where Iran saw a potential late-game winning goal disallowed for offside. The draw leaves Iran’s hope of advancing to the knockout stages for the first time hanging by a thread, requiring them to wait on other results to qualify as one of the best third-place teams.
Speaking at an astonishing press conference, Taremi didn’t hold back, labeling the entire tournament a “disaster” for how his team has been treated.
“We always complain about these things since the beginning, it’s a disaster World Cup. A disaster,” Taremi stated. “As professional players in a professional competition, it’s not right… it’s not fair. Who wants to help us… no one helps. No one.”
The striker also aimed his frustration directly at FIFA President Gianni Infantino, claiming the football chief made empty promises. “Infantino came to [our locker room] the first game [against New Zealand] and said we will solve every problem here, but actually FIFA did nothing,” Taremi claimed.
When directly asked if he believed FIFA and US authorities wanted Iran out of the competition, Taremi admitted: “We have to fight against everything here. I don’t know if people want [that] or not, but as we see it by our perspective, yeah, they are like that, I think.”
The buildup to the tournament has been plagued by severe geopolitical strain following recent regional conflicts involving the US. According to Iran’s head coach, Amir Ghalenoei, the team has faced “terrible” treatment from US authorities. About a dozen members of Iran’s World Cup delegation were denied visas to enter America, forcing the squad to set up their training camp across the border in Tijuana, Mexico. Taremi voiced further frustration that the team had to immediately fly back to Mexico following the match.
Despite the setbacks, Taremi insisted the squad is still holding onto hope and playing strictly for their fans back home. “We always do our best. We play for our people. We want them to be happy because we want to bring the joy,” he said. “We want to send a message of peace… but there is no peace about the others to us.”
