Iran World Cup team ordered out of US right after opener, coach says

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The coach of the Iranian soccer team said that his team had to leave the U.S. shortly after its 2-2 draw against New Zealand to open the FIFA World Cup.

Amir Ghalenoei said that officials did not give his team time to “recover” from the match before ordering them to return to Tijuana, Mexico. The Iranians are staying in Tijuana, which is a short flight from southern California — where the team played on Monday and will compete in its second game against Belgium on Sunday.

“After the game today, they said to us, ‘You have to leave immediately.’ It’s very important for us to have time for recovery, [but] we are asked to get on a plane and return to our camp in Tijuana, and we are really troubled by that,” Ghalenoei said through an interpreter, according to The Associated Press (AP).

Ghalenoei did not say who ordered his team to depart the U.S. back to Mexico.

While all 31 Iranian players and their coaches received visas, multiple members of the team’s traveling party did not. The World Cup is taking place against the backdrop of the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran, which may be coming to a close if a tentative agreement to end hostilities holds.

Andrew Giuliani, President Trump’s World Cup czar, said Sunday that the U.S. government allowed the Iranian team into the country early as a “goodwill gesture” ahead of its match against New Zealand.

“We want them to be able to compete,” Giuliani told Politico. “Even just coming in the day before the match, I think, is another example of the goodwill gesture to the team.”

But Mehdi Taremi, the captain of the squad, said after Monday’s match that the quick turnaround will impact he and his teammates’ rhythm. His remarks came after Iran, the 23rd-ranked team in the world according to FIFA, played to a draw against New Zealand, the 82nd-ranked team in the world.

“It’s supposed to be… tomorrow morning recovery, then we fly to Tijuana, then we return to [Los Angeles] again,” Taremi said. “But now, right now, we have to go back.”

After they face Belgium, the 10th-ranked team, the Iranians will have four days off before competing against Egypt, the 29th-ranked team. That match, the final of group play for both teams, will take place on June 26 in Seattle.

Despite the constant travel, Taremi noted that the fans at SoFi Stadium supported his team. Roughly 230,000 Iranians Americans live in and around Los Angeles, the largest number from the diaspora in any metro area, according to the Pew Research Center.

“It was an incredible atmosphere in the game, all 90 minutes,” the captain said, according to the AP. “It was like at home for us.”

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