Trump Says Iran Shouldn’t Be at World Cup as He Bombs the Country
Donald Trump issued a veiled threat to Iran Thursday, but not one directly related to the war: It concerns their men’s national soccer team. “The Iran National Soccer Team is welcome to The World Cup, but I really don’t believe it is appropriate that they be there, for their own life and safety. Thank you for your attention to this matter! President DONALD J. TRUMP,” the president wrote on Truth Social. The odious message comes after FIFA, soccer’s international governing body, met with Trump Wednesday and reportedly got his assurance that the Iranian team would be welcome. Last year, Iran became the first team to qualify for this summer’s World Cup, which will be hosted by the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. Tensions between Iran and the U.S. have been high since the start of the Islamic Republic in 1979, and Iran’s soccer team arriving in the U.S. was guaranteed to result in a charged atmosphere.But after the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran and ignited a war 13 days ago, the country’s participation in the World Cup was suddenly placed in doubt. How would Iran’s soccer team travel to a country it is at war with, let alone be able to train? The president of Iran’s soccer federation said early on in the war that “what is certain is that after this attack, we cannot be expected to look forward to the World Cup with hope.” Trump responded with indifference. “I really don’t care” if Iran participates, he told Politico last week. “I think Iran is a very badly defeated country. They’re running on fumes.” Iran is also part of the Trump administration’s travel ban, preventing many of its citizens from coming to the U.S. and seeing them play, although there is a carve-out for the team and support personnel. In December, the State Department didn’t grant visas for all of the Iranian officials who planned to attend the World Cup draw in Washington, D.C. Iran threatened to boycott the ceremony, prompting FIFA, the international soccer governing body, to step in. This time, though, Iran’s sports minister said Wednesday that the country would not be competing. “Given that this corrupt government assassinated our leader [Ayatollah Ali Khamenei], there are no conditions which allow us to participate in the World Cup,” Ahmad Donyamali said on Iranian state television. If Iran follows through and doesn’t take part, it would face a heavy fine and possible ban from future international competitions. Iran was drawn in Group G in the tournament, and is scheduled to play New Zealand on June 15 and Belgium on June 21 in Inglewood, California, not far from Los Angeles’s massive Iranian diaspora community, nicknamed “Tehrangeles.” But the odds are narrowing that they would get to see the team play live. Aside from the Iran question (and the badly planned war), the Trump administration has badly managed preparations for the World Cup. Host cities haven’t received hundreds of millions of dollars in funding for security, leading to a cancellation of public fan fests across the country. Vice President JD Vance and White House adviser Stephen Miller have threatened to deploy ICE agents to World Cup stadiums, raising the possibility of protests, violence, and mass arrests. Is that the threat to the Iranian national team’s “life and safety” that Trump is referring to?