Iran’s national football team is at the center of an off-field controversy during the FIFA World Cup and the country’s football federation is preparing to complain against FIFA for restrictions on travel at the tournament in North America.
According to officials in the Iranian Football Federation, the team’s preparations for key World Cup matches are being held up by restrictions limiting the entry and exit of players and staff in the U.S. So far Iranian Football Federation officials say this is affecting the team’s ability to prepare for games and putting them at a competitive disadvantage.
The dispute occurred just before Iran's next group stage match-up with Belgium in Los Angeles. Iran is currently located in Tijuana, Mexico, and had said it would try to travel to Los Angeles two days before the match to get permission to play. The federation said the request was made simply for the sake of the sport; it was a “sporting reason for us to have time for our players to understand how the local environment is and play their game and to get training sessions and tactical preparations.
According to the federation, however, the request was rejected.
Iranian officials say they had submitted their tournament preparation plans well in advance and expected the necessary logistical support to implement them. They claim that arriving one day before a massive World Cup match leaves little time to recover, train and adapt. The federation also expressed frustration at the 2-2 draw in its first World Cup match against New Zealand. Iranian officials told the newspaper that they were forced to leave Los Angeles on the evening of the match rather than stay longer to recover and train for the match.
The topic has received more attention because it highlights the challenges of hosting an international tournament in multiple countries at the same time and with diplomatic and security issues with some participating countries.
The United States administration has defended the arrangements. Andrew Giuliani, Executive Director of the White House FIFA Task Force, said Iran had been informed well before the tournament about the travel conditions that would apply to the team.
According to Giuliani, Iranian players and staff would be allowed to enter the United States only one day before each match and would be required to leave on the evening of the game. The same arrangement is expected for Iran’s final group-stage match against Egypt in Seattle.
It has divided football fans and analysts. Most of us, however, feel that at a global tournament, sporting issues should take priority, while governments should take the need for travel rules into account and manage travel policies based on national security concerns.
As Iran prepares its formal complaint to FIFA, the question is whether football’s governing body will intervene or if the arrangements will continue for the rest of the tournament. Whatever happens, the issue has added to Iran’s World Cup campaign and it is not in the best interest of the team to have problems on the pitch but problems in the world.
