It’s now 100 days until the FIFA World Cup is set to begin in North America, and the intensifying war in the Middle East has raised further questions around what is already a controversial tournament.
Chief among those questions right now: Will Iran participate in the tournament now that it’s essentially at war with one of the hosts?
And while sport will be a secondary concern to those in the Middle East this week, the conflict has triggered fresh doubts over Iran’s participation in competition, with the country involved in escalating violence following strikes by the United States and Israel.
With the Islamic Republic’s leadership decimated and the country under attack, here is everything we know about the nation’s soccer team, just over three months before its first group stage game against New Zealand in Los Angeles.
Iran has cast doubt on participation
Given the rate at which events are unfolding across the Middle East, it’s very early to predict how the Iranian soccer team will be affected by the conflict.
Already, though, the president of the nation’s soccer federation has cast doubt on its involvement in the World Cup.
“What is certain is that after this attack, we cannot be expected to look forward to the World Cup with hope,” Mehdi Taj told sports portal Varzesh3, according to the Associated Press.
The killing of Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has created a power vacuum in the regime, sparking a complex process of finding a successor. That makes it unclear who would be in charge of any decision about possibly boycotting the tournament, or what the next leader’s relationship with the US will be like.
When asked for comment on the situation, soccer’s world governing body FIFA referred CNN Sports to remarks by its general secretary, Mattias Grafstrom, on Sunday.
“It’s a bit premature to comment on that in detail, but of course we’ll monitor the developments around all issues around the world,” Grafstrom said after a meeting of the International Football Association Board in Wales.
“We had the final draw in Washington, where all teams participated. Our focus is to have a safe Word Cup with everyone participating.”
Prior tension between US and Iran around the tournament
Even before the most recent conflict broke out in the Middle East, there was already uncertainty about Iran’s participation in the tournament.
Fans from Iran are not able to enter the US after President Donald Trump’s administration imposed travel bans last year. It means many Iran supporters won’t be able to watch their team’s group games in California and Seattle.
And while athletes and coaches are exempt from the ban, Iran threatened to boycott the World Cup draw in Washington, DC, in December after members of its delegation were denied US visas.
In the end, a small delegation — including the team’s head coach — attended the ceremony, but the conflict gave a tangible example of the tension that was already simmering.
Iran was subsequently drawn into Group G and is set to play New Zealand, Egypt and Belgium at the World Cup.
The World Cup is set to be the biggest ever, with 48 teams playing in a tournament spanning Mexico, the United States and Canada from June 11 to July 19.
Sport has already been impacted
The conflict in the Middle East has already caused chaos on the sporting calendar. Notably, the Qatar soccer federation, QFA, has postponed all tournaments and matches until further notice.
Doha has been the target of multiple Iranian airstrikes in recent days, and residents have been advised to shelter in place.
The QFA didn’t refer to the ongoing strikes directly but said Sunday that “new dates for the resumption of competitions will be announced in due course.”
In addition, restrictions on air travel have caused problems for teams traveling to Australia for the opening weekend of the new Formula 1 season.
The first race will be hosted in Melbourne on March 8, but many involved would usually use Doha and Dubai airports as travel hubs.
