Nobody’s helping us: Furious Iran captain Taremi calls World Cup a ‘disaster’
Iran captain Mehdi Taremi has criticized FIFA and its president Gianni Infantino after his team’s World Cup campaign was marred by travel restrictions and logistical problems, saying the tournament was a “disaster” for his team.
Speak after Iran’s 1-1 draw against Egypt in Seattle on FridayTaremi accused FIFA of failing to keep promises made earlier in the tournament, saying the constant travel between Mexico and the United States had left the team at a significant disadvantage.
After the draw, Iran remained third in Group G. They now have to wait for Saturday’s results to see if they advance to the round of 32 as one of the top third-placed teams.
‘NOBODY HELPS US’
Taremi did not hide his frustration when he questioned FIFA’s handling of Iran’s participation in the tournament.
“It’s a World Cup disaster, a disaster,” Taremi told reporters.
“I mean FIFA has to solve every problem here, but unfortunately they couldn’t solve it from the beginning. Mr Infantino came to our dressing room after the first game against New Zealand and said: ‘It’s just the beginning…’ but the group stage ends tomorrow.”
Iran originally planned to base itself in Tucson, Arizona, but moved its camp to Tijuana, Mexico after tensions between the United States and Iran escalated. Since then, the team has had to travel abroad for all three group stage matches.
Several members of the Iranian support staff were also unable to obtain US visas, forcing the players to go without key logistics and rescue personnel.
“We don’t have our logistics people here – they don’t have a visa. How come we always have to travel from Tijuana?” Taremi said.
“We love the people of Tijuana. We love Mexico. They’re humble people and we love them, but as professional players in a professional competition, it’s not right.”
“It’s not fair. Who wants to help us? If they want us out, OK; let’s go. But it’s not fair. We don’t have recovery people or logistics to help us. We always complain about these things, but no one helps, no one.”
Taremi was also asked if he believed Iran was truly welcome at the tournament.
“We have to fight everything here,” he replied. “I don’t know what people want. From our perspective, yes, I think they like it.”
IRANIAN COACH INTERVES IN HOSTERS USA
Iran coach Amir Ghalenoei echoed his captain’s frustrations, accusing tournament co-hosts the United States of treating his side unfairly during the competition.
“The host country treated us very unfairly,” Ghalenoei said.
“If the host country had allowed us to come two weeks earlier to be better prepared, we would have been in better shape physically and mentally. But they robbed us of that justice.”
The American authorities did ease the restrictions slightly before Friday’s game by allowing the team to arrive in the Seattle area two days in advance, Iran still had to return to Tijuana immediately after the game.
Ghalenoei urged FIFA to ensure that future World Cup organizers do not subject teams to similar conditions.
“I urge FIFA: Do not allow the hosts to treat players and teams equally at future World Cups,” he said.
IRAN’S NARROW WAITING
Iran thought they had secured automatic qualification in stoppage time when Shoja Khalilzadeh fired home from close range, but the goal was ruled out for offside after a VAR review.
The late setback means Iran finished third in Group G and must now rely on results elsewhere to reach the knockout stages.
“I used to think we were a really downtrodden team, but after these three games I noticed we were also unlucky,” Ghalenoei said.
Despite the uncertainty, Iran’s coach insisted his players will remain focused as they await their fate.
“The team came with a sacred goal, which was to train and play well,” he said.
“God willing, we’ll advance, I’ll give them a day to recover properly, I’ll go to the beach, maybe have a little mental rest.”
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Issued by:
Saurabh Kumar
Published on:
27 Jun 2026 14:13 IST