President Donald Trumpbelieves it is not āappropriateā for Iran to compete in the 2026 FIFA World Cup ā for its own safety.
The president took to Truth Social Thursday and warned the team their ālife and safetyā would be at risk if they chose to participate.
āThe Iran National Soccer Team is welcome to The World Cup, but I really donāt believe it is appropriate that they be there, for their own life and safety,ā Trump wrote. āThank you for your attention to this matter!ā
On Wednesday, Iran announced its soccer team would boycott the 2026 World Cup in the United States due to the Operation Epic Fury.
āConsidering that this corrupt regime has assassinated our leader, under no circumstances can we participate in the World Cup,ā Iranian Sports Minister Ahmad Donyamali said in a statement. āOur children are not safe and, fundamentally, such conditions for participation do not exist.ā
āGiven the malicious actions they have carried out against Iran, they have forced two wars on us over eight or nine months and have killed and martyred thousands of our people,ā he added. āTherefore, we certainly cannot have such a presence.ā
More than 1,300 Iranian civilians have been killed in airstrikes by the U.S. and Israel over the past few weeks. This includes a reported 170 school children, who were killed in the U.S. bombing of a girlsā school.
A few months ago, FIFA awarded Trump its first-ever āFIFA Peace Prize.āThe organization praised Trump for supposedly helping to bring about peace in the Middle East.
āWe want to live in a safe world, in a safe environment,ā FIFA President Gianni Infantino said. āAnd you definitely deserve the first FIFA Peace Prize.ā
