WALLINGTON (Kashmir English): New Zealand national football team players have said they would be willing to play Iran outside the United States in their opening match of the FIFA World Cup 2026.
Iran were among the first nations to qualify for the finals but their participation has been in doubt since the US-Israel war on the Islamic Republic.
Both the US and Israel imposed war on Iran at the end of February.
Team Melli (Iran’s national team) are scheduled to play all three of their opening-round group matches in the US, with their opening game scheduled to take place against New Zealand in Los Angeles on June 15. But the Iranian soccer federation has threatened to boycott fixtures on US soil.
New Zealand are preparing for the Los Angeles match but on Wednesday players said they could accommodate a switch outside the US if necessary.
Netherlands-based midfielder Ryan Thomas said Iran had earned their spot at the World Cup, and the All Whites would be able to manage the extra attention generated by the match. “They deserve to be there as qualifiers,” he told a news agency.
“If we’ve got to play them in Mexico or Canada, then yeah, we play them there. It’s not really a big deal for me.”
During the June 11-July 19 FIFA World Cup, New Zealand will be based in the southern California city of San Diego, which is a short drive to the Mexican border.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum also said last week her country would be willing to hosting Iran’s World Cup fixtures although the final say on any venue switch would be FIFA’s.
Similarly, Australia-based winger Kosta Barbarouses said players would leave it up to “the people in charge” to make a decision on their Iran match, adding he didn’t think a switch would harm New Zealand’s campaign.
“I don’t think it would derail our preparation at all,” he told an international media outlet.
“We’ve got a base before our first game, anyway. So, yeah, I don’t see why not.”
FIFA on Iran World Cup games venues
FIFA has, however, declined to comment on the possibility of switching the venues for Iran’s matches but said it was in contact with the Iranian soccer federation and looking forward to teams competing as per the current match schedule.
