Iranian FA chief Mehdi Taj said on Thursday he was not aware of plans to include striker Sardar Azmoun in Iran’s World Cup squad, despite a call from an Islamic Republic vice-president for his recall.
Azmoun, who has scored 57 goals in 91 caps, was left out of coach Amir Ghalenoei’s provisional squad amid local media reports that he had been excluded for disloyalty to the government.
The 31-year-old issued an impassioned proclamation of his patriotism last week, prompting Vice President Abdolkarim Hosseinzadeh’s call on Monday.
“Let’s bring him back to the national team if possible,” Hosseinzadeh further wrote X.
“This is not just a sporting decision, but a message in favor of national unity.”
Taj told Iranian TV on Thursday that he had no information about a call for Azmoun, adding when pressed on the matter: «This matter will be followed up through proper discussions. As for Mr. Sardar, I am currently not aware of his situation.»
According to media reports in Iran, Azmoun upset supporters of the hardline government when he posted a photo of a meeting with Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai, shortly after the US and Israel launched airstrikes on Iran.
Iran views the United Arab Emirates, where Azmoun plays his club football, as belligerent in the war that followed the airstrikes.
VISA WAITING
The provisional World Cup squad is currently in training camp in Turkey, but time is running out for Azmoun as the final 26-man line-up must be decided before FIFA’s deadline on Monday.
The selected players will now travel to Tijuana, Mexico instead of Tucson, Arizona, to set up their tournament base next week.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo said on Monday that FIFA had approached her government after US authorities said they did not want Iran to remain in the country during the June 11-July 19 tournament.
Iran’s ambassador to Mexico, Abolfazl Pasandideh, visited Tijuana on Thursday and thanked Sheinbaum for hosting the team after the United States «failed to do so.»
Although Mexico is co-hosting the World Cup with the US and Canada, Iran will play two group matches in Los Angeles and the third in Seattle.
However, Pasandideh said the team still did not have a visa to enter the US.
FFIRI president Taj, who was denied entry to Canada for the FIFA congress in late April because of his ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), said FIFA should guarantee U.S. visas.
“FIFA should arrange multiple-entry visas so that the players can travel back and forth,” said Taj, who served as a senior IRGC official before moving into football administration.
“If they don’t get a visa to enter the United States, the consequences are pretty clear.”
Both the US and Canada classify the IRGC as a “terrorist entity” and have made it clear that they will not admit people associated with the military elite.
Taj previously said that some of the squad and coaching staff had also served in the IRGC while performing their mandatory national service.
Iran is scheduled to play New Zealand in the tournament opener on June 15.
Published on May 29, 2026
