Countries to withdraw from World Cup as Iran ‘ready’ to boycott 2026 US tournament

Iran could become the latest country to boycott the World Cup for political reasons after conflict erupts between the US and Israel

Iran may be on the brink of boycotting the 2026 World Cup after a bombing campaign backed by the US and Israel has heightened tensions in the region. Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei was killed in an airstrike, raising questions about the country’s involvement in the upcoming World Cup.

Despite topping their group in the Asian qualifiers, reports coming out of Iran following the recent attacks suggest they are considering pulling out. This will be a major issue for FIFA’s upper echelons, especially since no qualifying country has ever boycotted the World Cup for political reasons.

However, this does not mean that countries have not withdrawn from the qualifying rounds for political reasons or withdrawn from the tournament for other reasons.

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Following rumors that Iran may boycott the 2026 tournament, the Mirror highlighted past examples of countries withdrawing from World Cup competitions due to political reasons.

Uruguay withdraws from the 1934 World Cup

Uruguay entered the second tournament in 1934 as the reigning world champions. However, despite receiving an invitation, he withdrew from the 1930 World Cup in Uruguay in protest of several European teams not traveling to South America.

The 1934 World Cup remains the only tournament in which the defending champions did not participate.

Austria withdraws from the 1938 World Cup

Austria was one of the favorites to win the 1938 tournament, but was unable to participate because the Nazis had annexed the country by the time the tournament began.

Germany’s squad for the tournament included some Austrian players, but not star player Matthias Sinderahl, who withdrew from representing the Nazi-led nation.

India withdraws over ‘barefoot’ claim

India has qualified for the World Cup only once, but never as an Asian nation. This was in 1950, when India had qualified for the final by default but chose not to participate in the tournament.

Contrary to popular belief, it was not because FIFA banned barefoot play (as India did at the Olympics two years ago), but rather because of travel costs, practice time and team selection issues.

No African teams participated in the 1966 World Cup.

The 1966 tournament is fondly remembered in England, but one aspect that is often overlooked is the absence of an African team.

This was because African teams boycotted the qualifying rounds in protest of FIFA’s decision to allocate only one spot to the African, Asian and Oceanian confederations.

After a ghost game, Chile qualified for the 1974 World Cup.

The closest we’ve ever seen a qualifying nation boycott a World Cup final for political reasons was the 1973 intercontinental playoff between Chile and the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union refused to participate in the second match in Santiago in protest of Augusto Pinochet’s ruthless dictatorship.

He overthrew the socialist government and transformed Chile from an ally of the former Soviet Union to an enemy. As a result, Chile’s players entered the pitch alone and captain Francisco Valdes scored a goal into an empty goal before the match was abandoned.

2022 World Cup protests

Although there have been few boycott threats in recent years, tensions arose during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. All 32 teams that qualified took part in the tournament, but there were protests from some players over alleged human rights abuses and the country’s controversial LGBT record.

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