Top officials of the Iranian Football Association have left Canada ahead of the start of the FIFA Congress following an incident at immigration checks at the Toronto airport, Iranian media reported.
President of the Association Mehdi That onethe secretary general and deputy secretary returned on the first flight to Turkey, citing inappropriate behavior by officials and an insult directed at one of the most respected organs of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), reports AFP.
In 2024, Canada declared the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) terrorist group and banned its members from entering the country.
The delegation arrived in Canada with official visasbut the incident deepened doubts about the possibility of free movement of Iranian players, officials and fans during the World Cup, which will be held in the US, Canada and Mexico this summer.
Canadian authorities they did not comment on a specific caseciting privacy, but emphasized that IRGC officials are barred from entering Canada. FIFA contacted the Iranian delegation and expressed its regret, and announced that president Gianni Infantino would organize a meeting at the organization’s headquarters.
Doubts about Iran’s presence at the World Cup were further strengthened due to the war in the Middle East, which began on February 28 with the American-Israeli attacks on Iran.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said last week that Iran would football players are welcomebut warned that members of the delegation with ties to the IRGC could be barred from entering the US.
(Fena | Photo: X)
