Iranian team submits travel documents to American embassy for clearance

The Iranian football team's World Cup participation remains uncertain, but they have taken a crucial step by submitting their passports to the US embassy in Turkey to obtain visas, according to Mehdi Taj, the head of the Iranian Football Federation, who made the announcement on Friday.

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Taj explained that the team is following instructions from the governing body of world football, as they navigate the complex process of obtaining visas amidst ongoing negotiations between Iran and the United States to end the Middle East war that started in February.

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Discussions between Taj and FIFA took place the previous day, during which he was instructed to submit all passports to the US embassy in Ankara, as the team prepares to travel to Spain on Saturday and then on to their base camp in Mexico, which has already issued visas to the squad.

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Taj expressed that the team is eagerly awaiting the outcome, expecting to receive the passports and travel to Tijuana by tomorrow at the latest, in order to meet their scheduled commitments.

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The Iranian Football Federation has conveyed certain concerns and requests to FIFA, warning that if visas are not issued for all players, technical staff, and other delegation members, they may be forced to consider alternative options.

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Taj remains optimistic, assessing that all visas will likely be issued in full, and therefore, no significant problems are anticipated in this regard.

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The Iranian team had initially planned to establish their World Cup base in Tucson, Arizona, but has since relocated to Tijuana, a city in northwestern Mexico, due to the uncertain circumstances.

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The team's group matches are all scheduled to take place in the United States, with their first two games set to be played in Los Angeles, against New Zealand on 15 June and Belgium on 21 June.

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Their final group match will be against Egypt on 27 June, which will take place in Seattle, marking the conclusion of their group stage campaign.