Iran coach Amir Ghalenoei says that although his team is still being treated unfairly by the host US at the World Cup through travel restrictions and visa refusals, he is optimistic FIFA will persuade the Americans to lessen some of those strictures next week.
“I am very glad that the Iranian nation is behind us,” Ghalenoei said through an interpreter. “Our martyrs in Iran, we play for them. But I know that this kind of behavior has hurt our people. Even if we spent billions of dollars, we would not be able to have justice for our people. It just shows we are an oppressed country. But nevertheless, I hope we achieve peace, and I hope this kind of behavior does not become institutionalized in the World Cup.”
Iran returned to the Los Angeles area on Saturday for its second match against Belgium on Sunday, but Ghalenoei said he was forced to curtail his team’s training ahead of this difficult meeting with the No. 10 team in FIFA’s world rankings after his request to travel Friday was denied.
“We needed to have 24 hours (in Los Angeles), but they gave us less than 16 hours, and that is why we had to leave our training halfway,” Ghalenoei said. “These constraints have made it very difficult for us.”
Ghalenoei also appealed to the World Cup’s other teams and coaches to speak out against the treatment of the Iranian team.
“I ask the other 47 coaches a question, and none of them have responded to me,” he said. “We are here for football, not politics, and we are saying that again. Our grievances are to the way they’ve behaved with us. I haven’t heard anything from other coaches (at the World Cup), and I’m sure they’re busy and preparing their own teams and we never expect them to have a reaction. But if I had seen another team being treated the way we are being treated, I would say something.”
The Iranian team is operating under travel restrictions set by the US, which began a war against Iran on Feb. 28. Team Melli has been directed to fly to its matches in the US on the day before the game and to return immediately afterward to its training base in Tijuana, Mexico.
While that schedule is not considered onerous by other teams who voluntarily travel in the same window, it’s not what Ghalenoei wants. Iran worked out at the LA Galaxy’s home stadium in suburban Carson on Saturday afternoon after the short flight from Tijuana.
“You cannot deny that our situation hasn’t been the same as all the other teams,” Iran midfielder Saeid Ezatolahi said. “All the other teams have managed to focus on our planning, whereas we have had to spend so much time just commuting.”
Ghalenoei repeatedly praised FIFA President Gianni Infantino for his attempts to loosen the Americans’ restrictions, and he is optimistic that the US will allow Team Melli to travel to Seattle next week two days in advance of its final group stage match against Egypt.
“For the third game, they said, ‘In Seattle, you can do what you want,’” Ghalenoei said. “'You can act the way you want to, and you can come earlier.' But my problem is, why didn’t they let us come earlier for the first two games as well? I just know for the last game, they’ve allowed us to make our own decisions with planning the travel. But unfortunately for the first two games, others made these timing decisions for us.”
The coach said FIFA spent much of Friday attempting to persuade the American government to allow Iran to fly to Los Angeles that day. Ghalenoei waited by the phone for the approval to head for the airport, but the negotiations were unsuccessful.
“They said, ‘Sorry, we weren’t able to do that,’” Ghalenoei said. “And that’s going to affect us mentally, especially because as a head coach, I want to focus on technical things. I thank FIFA for that, but it doesn’t mean it’s succeeded. I just hope problems won’t occur in future World Cups.”
Iran also played its opening match of the World Cup at SoFi Stadium on Monday, drawing 2-2 with underdog New Zealand one day after a five-hour commute that included customs delays.
Ghaleneoi said after the game that he was surprised and upset to be ordered out of the country immediately instead of taking another day in the US to optimize his team's recovery period, while US officials claimed Iran already knew about its restrictions.
Ghalenoei acknowledged Saturday that the Iranians cleared customs and reached their Los Angeles hotel much more quickly this time following their short flight from Tijuana, giving credit to US officials for ironing out some of the bureaucratic wrinkles.
But he also renewed his complaints about the members of the team’s traveling party who had been denied visas, including the head of Iran’s football federation, coaching support personnel and media relations staffers.
“Such kind of behavior is not suitable for a World Cup,” Ghalenoei said. “You invite a team, but you don’t let in their support staff, their backroom staff?”
Ghalenoei said Iran’s soccer federation hasn’t formally lodged a complaint with FIFA about its treatment, but is only airing its grievances publicly.
Belgian right back Thomas Meunier expressed his team’s empathy with the Iranians’ situation, which reminded him of facing Ukraine after the Russian invasion.
“We usually don’t mix football with politics, but it’s quite challenging to separate the two, admittedly,” Meunier said through an interpreter. “This period should push the Iranian team to do better, in my opinion. When we played Ukraine in Nations League, there was very high motivation, more energy. They want to make their people proud and defend their nation. For us, it’s an added challenge. I would imagine some Iranian players have a family that’s directly impacted by the war, and we obviously feel for these people.”
