No US visas for several Iranian officials

Unlike all national players, several officials of the Iranian Football Association will not receive visas to enter the USA for the upcoming World Cup, according to the media. They include the president of the association, Mehdi Tadsch. According to the Iranian news agency Tasnim, the team manager, representatives of the foreign ministry and the security department as well as the team's press officer were also denied entry to the USA.

The media report a total of twelve rejected applications, but official confirmation from the association is still pending. Nevertheless, the people concerned are to accompany the national team to Tijuana in order to reapply for visas for the USA in Mexico. The team is expected to arrive in the city near the border with the US state of California on Sunday night.

All members of the Iranian team had previously received their visas to enter Mexico. As the US news agency AP also reported, citing unnamed US officials, the visas for players, coaches and other members of the team staff to enter the USA have also been approved.

Iran has been in a military conflict with the USA since the end of February. The entry of the national team into the United States had caused discussions. This was one of the reasons why the Iranian association announced at the end of May that it would be moving its training camp from the US state of Arizona to Tijuana, Mexico, south of San Diego.

The Iranian team will play its first two group matches in Los Angeles. The third preliminary round match will take place in Seattle. According to Iranian state television, the delegation flew to Mexico on Saturday after a two-week training camp in Turkey.