Iran will play its final World Cup warm-up behind closed doors in Turkey tomorrow before departing on Sunday for a revised tournament base in Tijuana, Mexico, football officials said — the latest development in a preparatory campaign overshadowed by regional tensions and heightened security scrutiny.
The Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran (FFIRI) confirmed the friendly against Mali, to be staged at a Turkish seaside resort, will be held without spectators or media “considering the importance of the match and in line with the tactical objectives of Iran’s head coach.” The match is the fourth international tune-up since late February; Iran have lost to Nigeria and beaten Costa Rica and Gambia in three friendlies staged across two training camps since air strikes in late February raised questions about the team’s ability to travel and prepare.
FIFA has approved the FFIRI’s request to shift Iran’s World Cup base from Tucson, Arizona, to Tijuana, Mexico, the federation said. From Tijuana the team will cross the border to Los Angeles for its first two Group G fixtures — against New Zealand and Belgium — before travelling to Seattle for their final group match against Egypt. Iran’s campaign begins on June 15 when they meet New Zealand in Los Angeles.
Security and diplomatic issues have been a recurring theme around Iran’s preparations. U.S. Senator Marco Rubio said in recent congressional remarks that Washington had “no problem” with the Iranian team entering the United States for the tournament, but warned the U.S. would not permit delegation members who have known ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to accompany them. “What we’re not going to allow is for them to embed in their delegation a bunch of people that we know have nothing to do with athletics and have ties to the IRGC,” Rubio said.
The comment follows earlier measures taken by Canada: FFIRI president Mehdi Taj was denied entry to Canada in late April to attend the FIFA Congress after authorities cited his links to the IRGC. Both the United States and Canada classify the IRGC as a terrorist entity, and officials have said they will scrutinise delegations to prevent what they describe as non-sporting personnel from travelling under the cover of sporting accreditation.
The switch of base and the closed-door friendly underline how geopolitics have affected Iran’s World Cup build-up. Moving the camp to Tijuana limits long domestic travel on U.S. soil but requires daily cross-border commutes for match days, while the exclusion of media and the public from the Mali match reduces outside scrutiny of final tactical preparations. With the tournament less than three weeks away, the FFIRI must finalise its squad and staff arrangements under conditions shaped as much by diplomatic constraints as by sporting considerations.