Iran football body claims fans’ tickets for World Cup games in US have been revoked

Adding more turmoil to a chaotic World Cup buildup for Iran, the national football federation claimed Tuesday that FIFA revoked the ticket allocation for fans at the team’s three group-stage games in the United States.

Each federation for the 48 teams taking part is entitled to receive and distribute 8% of stadium capacity for each of its games at the World Cup, adding up to several thousand tickets per game.

Those allocations typically went on sale to each team’s most loyal fans soon after the tournament draw in December, when Iranians had already for five months been subject to a travel ban by the US government.

Now, just days before Iran opens its World Cup — on June 15 at the 70,000-seat Los Angeles Rams’ stadium in Inglewood against New Zealand — the federation claimed in a statement reported by semi-official state media it was now unable to provide any tickets to its supporters.

The claim adds to the tensions between Iranian soccer, FIFA, and the tournament co-host, the US, which began military attacks on Iran on February 28.

FIFA has total authority over ticketing operations at the World Cup, yet the Iranian soccer body suggested, “the United States has now taken steps to obstruct the presence of Iranian supporters at the stadiums.”

“This incident raises serious questions about the influence of non-sporting and political considerations on the organization of the world’s biggest football event,” the Iranian soccer federation said.

FIFA said in a statement Tuesday it is “working closely with the IR Iran Football Federation to identify compliant solutions that maximise opportunities for Iranian supporters to attend matches.”

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