Iran’s sports minister said Wednesday that the country cannot participate in the 2026 FIFA World Cup following airstrikes by the United States and Israel that killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, deepening uncertainty around the national team’s involvement in the tournament scheduled to take place across North America.
The statement marks the clearest indication yet from Tehran that the ongoing conflict could disrupt its presence at international sporting events as fighting between Iran, the United States and Israel continues to escalate across the region.
The war, which began on February 28, has resulted in 1,255 deaths and more than 12,000 injuries in Iran within the first 12 days, according to Iranian authorities.
Iran’s sports minister Ahmad Donyamali said the country would not take part in the global tournament because of the circumstances surrounding the attacks.
“Considering that this corrupt regime has assassinated our leader, under no circumstances can we participate in the World Cup,” Donyamali told state television.
He added that the security environment and ongoing conflict made participation impossible.
“Our children are not safe and, fundamentally, such conditions for participation do not exist,” he said.
The comments represent the first explicit statement by an Iranian government official rejecting participation in the tournament since the airstrikes nearly two weeks earlier.
The 2026 World Cup will be co-hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada from June 11 to July 19.
Iran had already qualified for the competition and was drawn into Group G alongside Belgium, Egypt and New Zealand.
All three of Iran’s group-stage matches are scheduled to take place in the United States, including two in Los Angeles and one in Seattle.
Iran was also the only qualified nation absent from a FIFA planning summit held in Atlanta last week.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino said U.S. President Donald Trump had indicated that the Iranian team would be welcome to compete in the tournament despite the ongoing conflict.
Iran’s football federation president Mehdi Taj had earlier questioned the prospect of participation after the attacks but stopped short of announcing a boycott.