The Iranian national team must leave the country overnight after each match of the 2026 World Cup held on U.S. soil.

The U.S. made this announcement on June 16, following criticism over Washington’s handling of visa and stay duration issues for the Iranian team after their first match.

Mr. Andrew Giuliani, the official in charge of 2026 World Cup affairs for U.S. President Donald Trump, stated: “We have clearly communicated that this is the procedure being applied.”

He also outlined the conditions under which the Iranian team is allowed to enter the U.S. for the matches. “The team will be permitted to enter one day before the match. Once the game ends, they must leave the U.S. that same day—on the evening of the match. The same rule will also apply when they play in Los Angeles and Seattle,” Mr. Giuliani said.

In their opening Group G match of the 2026 World Cup held in California (USA), Iran held New Zealand to a 2-2 draw. However, the Iranian team had to leave the U.S. just hours after the game ended around 8 p.m. local time and return to their base camp in Mexico. This sparked criticism over the U.S. handling of visa issues, as the Iranian team did not have a full day to rest and recover at the hotel.

After the match, Coach Amir Ghalenoei said the team was asked to leave the U.S. and immediately boarded a plane back to Tijuana (Mexico), located about 225 km from the match site. According to Ghalenoei, the team had originally planned to stay in California overnight to ensure proper physical recovery.

The Iranian team is currently based in Mexico after moving their training camp from Arizona, USA, at the end of last month. This decision was made amid rising tensions between the U.S., Israel, and Iran following the outbreak of conflict in late February.

After their draw with New Zealand, Iran will face Belgium in California on June 21 in California before traveling to Seattle to meet Egypt in the final group stage match. The results of these games will determine Iran’s chances of advancing to the knockout rounds.