A Team Between Two Countries
WORDS Ali Sharifzade in Tehran, Iran
PHOTOGRAPHY Alejandro Gutiérrez in Tijuana, Mexico
June 11 2026
The Iranian national football team known in Persian as “Team Melli” arrived at Tijuana International Airport in Mexico shortly after 5 a.m. local time on Sunday, June 7. A team that now, more than ever on its journey to the World Cup, carries a story unlike most other participants in the tournament.
To understand the circumstances facing Team Melli ahead of the World Cup, it is necessary to go back several months.
In March 2025, Iran became one of the first teams to secure qualification for the World Cup. The early qualification raised hopes for a strong appearance at the world’s biggest football tournament; however, the months that followed completely changed the situation.
At the end of February 2026, after the United States and Israel launched attacks on targets in Iran and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, was killed, the political and security situation in the region entered a new phase, one that cast doubt over Iran’s participation in the World Cup for a period of time.
Some officials and authorities stated that Iran’s national team might not be able to enter the United States, a country that was in a state of war with Iran. U.S. President Donald Trump also suggested that the Iranian team should avoid traveling to America “for their own safety.” There were even discussions about replacing Iran with Italy in the World Cup. However, Iran’s challenges were not limited to political issues.
The team faced a squad in which 17 players came from the domestic league, a league that had been suspended for nearly four months due to the wartime situation. As a result, domestic players had spent a long period away from competitive football and needed intensive training camps to return to match conditions.
Iran’s first preparation camp was held in Antalya, Turkey, in March but even reaching that camp proved to be difficult for many players. With the conflict continuing, members of the team completed an approximately 40-hour overland trip from Tehran to Turkey. According to a report by The Athletic, during the journey, Alireza Beiranvand, Iran’s first-choice goalkeeper, had to lie down in the bus aisle to rest his legs.
This was a very different image from the path followed by many other World Cup teams, teams that went through their preparations with full facilities, detailed planning and greater stability. Iran was even forced to change its original plan of establishing its base camp in Arizona, United States, moving its headquarters to Tijuana, Mexico, a border city south of San Diego that will host the Iranian delegation during the tournament. A city that is often ranked among the top 10 most dangerous cities in the world.
Despite this change, Iran’s group-stage matches will still be played on U.S. soil. Reports suggest that the Iranian team may have to enter the United States for each match and leave the country immediately afterwards- a situation that creates unusual limitations regarding travel, recovery, and managing players’ energy levels.
Alongside the logistical issue, external pressure on the team has continued and much of this pressure has come from the U.S. government. One of the latest issues was the process of issuing visas for members of the delegation. The players, head coach Amir Ghalenoei, and some members of the coaching staff received entry approval, but 13 members of the delegation had still not received visas until the last minute.
If this situation continues, Iran may begin the World Cup without part of its support staff, in contrast to the many other teams who have arrived with large numbers of technical, medical, analytical, and media personnel.
All of these events have created a complicated situation for a team that, in addition to competing against opponents on the field, must also deal with a series of challenges away from the pitch. These circumstances and pressures will undoubtedly have a significant psychological impact on the team and its players.
A team that deserves to go through a calm and normal preparation process, just like other teams in this World Cup, has instead faced months of uncertainty over travel arrangements and security issues since the war began on February 28.
Many Iranian fans have also been unable to attend matches in the United States due to visa restrictions, a problem that a number of other nations including Morocco and Iraq have faced. Nevertheless, when the Iranian delegation arrived in Tijuana, a group of Iranian fans were present at designated team hotel.
Ali, an Iranian living in the United States, had made the five-hour drive from L.A to see the national team. He told our reporter:
“I hope that after everything that has happened, the players will gain more confidence.”
Ali, who was not born in Iran and is planning to watch the national team live for the first time, spoke about his expectations from the players:
“I just want the team to answer those who are against them on the field. I want the players to show what they are capable of.”
Two days after arriving in Tijuana, Iran scheduled a friendly match against Club Tijuana's under-21side. The fixture itself was unusual. With the team based in Mexico and preparing for matches in the United States, opportunities for warm-up games against other national teams were limited.
As the players prepared to leave their hotel for the match, a crowd gathered outside the perimeter fence. There were mothers with their children, supporters carrying photographs of the team, and young fans hoping to collect autographs. One supporter had already filled both pages dedicated to Iran in his World Cup sticker album.
When the players emerged from the hotel, three stopped to greet the supporters. Mehdi Taremi, Alireza Jahanbakhsh and Ramin Rezaeian signed autographs and posed for photographs before boarding the team bus. As it departed, the crowd applauded and chanted the team's name. What stood out was that many of those waiting were not Iranian. Most were local residents from Tijuana who had come simply to experience the World Cup atmosphere and welcome one of the tournament's most unusual guests. Among them was Laura Cuevas, who attended with her young son.
“We came to enjoy the World Cup vibe, to live the experience, to feel the energy,” she said. “I want to teach my son values like respect, empathy and tolerance. I want him to have these memories when he grows up.”
Cuevas also reflected on the circumstances that had brought Iran to Tijuana.
“Political issues are delicate,” she said. “But I'm proud that Mexico and Tijuana welcome any country with open arms.” She believed the reception from local supporters would not go unnoticed by the players.“Imagine being thousands of kilometres away from your home, your family and everything familiar,”she said. “With all the obstacles that exist because of politics and conflicts, I imagine it makes them feel good. They feel the energy.”
For a team that has spent months dealing with uncertainty around travel, visas and preparation, the scene outside the hotel offered a rare moment of normality. In a city that many outside Mexico know only through headlines about insecurity, local supporters chose to welcome a team that has spent much of the past year being discussed through the lens of politics rather than football.
Iran will begin its World Cup campaign in less than two weeks, on June 16, against New Zealand at SoFi Stadium in California. They will then face Belgium on June 21, before playing Egypt on June 26 in their final group-stage match. All of Iran’s matches will be played in the United States.
From a technical and sporting perspective, Iran’s national team will likely have one of the most difficult and complicated preparation situations among the 48 teams competing at the 2026 World Cup, and unlike most of its rivals, it has not entered the tournament under equal conditions.
When a team has to travel between two countries, has members of its staff without visas, and remains uncertain about its entry arrangements until the final days, it naturally does not have the same conditions as other teams.
At the World Cup, differences are usually decided on the football pitch. But for Iran, even before the first match begins, a major part of this competition has already started away from the field. This team must fight not only against opponents on the pitch, but also against pressures outside it.
In many ways, this mirrors the situation of many Iranians who, for years, have had to navigate circumstances beyond their control while striving for something resembling normality. Before a ball has been kicked, Team Melli has already travelled a road unlike almost any other team at this World Cup