Iran has announced it will file a formal complaint with FIFA over the treatment of its national football team, which has been forced to train and stay in Tijuana, Mexico, during the World Cup due to ongoing tensions with the United States. The team, composed of devout Muslims, has been confined to a city known for its bars, casinos, and brothels, all of which are forbidden under Islamic law.
Training Camp Relocated to Tijuana
The Iranian squad originally planned to base its training camp in Tucson, Arizona, but was forced to switch to Tijuana, just across the Mexican border, because of the recent conflict with the US. Players are only permitted to leave their hotel for training sessions or to travel to matches in the US, after which they are immediately escorted back to Mexico. The team has described this arrangement as a form of imprisonment.
Captain Mehdi Taremi and head coach Amir Ghalenoei have publicly criticized FIFA for the situation. “Everything is like disaster for us,” Taremi said. “It’s not good for the football. In the World Cup, you have to prepare for the next game, which is a lot of stress for the players and the staff and everyone. But we don’t have that support and FIFA have to help us more than this.” Ghalenoei added, “Our team is the most oppressed one in the whole World Cup.”
Restrictions and Complaints
The Iranian football federation stated that its request to travel to Los Angeles two days before the World Cup match against Belgium on Sunday was rejected. The federation believes “such restrictions are inconsistent with the principle of providing equal conditions for all participating teams and may negatively affect teams' preparation processes.” Iran soccer secretary-general Hedayat Mombeini said, “We are the only team that are participating in the World Cup that we are at the host cities just 24 hours and it is not fair. All these limitations on us - it has negative effects on our physical and mental things on our players.”
Furthermore, nine members of Iran’s backroom staff have been barred from entering the US because they performed national service with the Islamic Republic Guard Corps, which is designated as a terrorist organization by the US and Canada. These restrictions have not been lifted despite an interim agreement to end the war with the US and Israel.
Life in Tijuana
Tijuana’s notorious Zona Norte red-light district is packed with bars, clubs, brothels, and sex shops, with around 30,000 of the city’s 2.4 million residents working as sex workers. A giant casino advertisement sits just outside Iran’s training headquarters at Club Tijuana’s stadium, five miles from the US border. The Hong Kong Gentlemen’s Club is even running its own version of the World Cup, with pole dancers dressed in rival team colors.
A source described the players as “very withdrawn” in the vice capital. “While there’s lots to do there’s not a lot for them to do. They are all very quiet and polite but the team is very closed. I can’t imagine what they would think of the Hong Kong club.” Iran drew 2-2 with New Zealand in its opening match and will play its final group game against Israel in Seattle on Friday, June 26. FIFA had not responded to a request for comment at the time of publication.
