FIFA President Gianni Infantino said that the upcoming World Cup in Mexico, the USA and Canada would go as planned and there would be no changes to the schedule. He also stated that all teams will participate. His comment came amid the doubts over Iran’s participation, considering the ongoing war with the US and Israel. Earlier this week, Iran Football Federation chief Mehdi Taj said the country was in “negotiations” with the world body and was seeking to have its Group G World Cup matches shifted from the USA to Mexico.
“FIFA is looking forward to all teams participating at the World Cup to compete in a spirit of fair play and mutual respect,” Infantino said from Zurich during an online FIFA Council meeting, as reported by news agency AFP.
“We have a schedule. We will soon have the 48 competing teams confirmed, and we want the World Cup to go ahead as scheduled,” he added.
According to the FIFA World Cup schedule, Iran are set to play all three group stage matches in the United States. The matches against New Zealand and Belgium are slated for Los Angeles, while the contest against Egypt is scheduled for Seattle.
“FIFA can’t solve geopolitical conflicts, but we are committed to using the power of football and the World Cup to build bridges and promote peace as our thoughts are with those who are suffering as a consequence of the ongoing wars,” added Infantino.
Earlier, Mehdi Taj had said that due to the attacks launched by the USA and Israel on Iran, he wanted the matches moved out of the US to either one of the other host nations – Canada or Mexico.
“We will be preparing for the World Cup. We will boycott the United States but not the World Cup,” Taj said in the video released on Wednesday.
He also said that the Iran Football Federation had already opened talks with FIFA about potentially relocating its matches.
On the other hand, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum had said that her country is prepared to host Iran’s first-round matches if required.
The FIFA World Cup is scheduled to be played from June 11 to July 19. There will be 48 teams in the group stage, divided into 12 groups of 4.
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