US President Donald Trump has said Iran’s men’s national soccer team was welcome to participate in the 2026 World Cup, but believed it was not appropriate that they be there “for their own life and safety”.

Iran’s sports minister said on Wednesday that his nation’s athletes could not participate after the US launched air strikes alongside Israel against Tehran.

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The attacks triggered a region-wide conflict that has shown no signs of abating.

Previously, Trump had said “I really don’t care” if Iran participated or not, before FIFA president Gianni Infantino said he had met with the US president, who told him he welcomed Iran’s participation in the World Cup.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the Iran team was welcome, but believed they would be putting themselves at risk.

“The Iran National Soccer Team is welcome to The World Cup, but I really don’t believe it is appropriate that they be there, for their own life and safety,” Trump wrote.

The 48-team World Cup will be held in the US, Canada and Mexico from June 11 to July 19, with Iran scheduled for matches in Los Angeles and Seattle.

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An official withdrawal by Iran from the showpiece event, which has not yet happened, would be a first in the modern era and would leave soccer’s global governing body, FIFA, with the urgent task of finding a replacement team.

Iran was the only nation missing from a FIFA planning summit for World Cup participants held last week in Atlanta.

FIFA did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters. Late last year it awarded Trump — who has campaigned aggressively for the Nobel Peace Prize — its own inaugural peace prize.

Earlier this week, Australia granted humanitarian visas to six Iranian women soccer players and a team support worker after they sought asylum, fearing persecution on their return home for their refusal to sing the national anthem at an Asia Cup match.

One later decided to return to Iran.

Trump had urged Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to grant asylum to members of the Iranian women’s team, saying the US would if Australia did not.

Reuters