FIFA canceled the allocation of tickets to Iranian fans for three of the team’s matches. world cup The U.S. Soccer Federation announced Tuesday that the game in the United States was played.
Each of the 48 participating federations is entitled to receive and distribute 8% of the stadium capacity for each World Cup match, adding up to up to several thousand tickets.
The federation claimed in a statement carried by semi-official state media that it was no longer able to provide tickets to supporters, days before Iran opens the World Cup to face New Zealand at the 70,000-seat Los Angeles Rams stadium in Inglewood on June 15.
claim add to the confusion A military offensive against Iran was launched on February 28th between Iran Soccer, FIFA, and the tournament’s co-sponsor, the United States.
Although FIFA has full authority over ticket sales operations for the World Cup, Iran’s soccer body suggested that “the United States is currently taking steps to disrupt the presence of Iranian supporters in stadiums.”
“This incident raises serious questions about the influence that non-sporting political considerations have on the organization of the world’s biggest soccer event,” the Iranian Football Federation said in a statement.
FIFA has been contacted for comment.
Iran’s difficult road to the World Cup
The Iranian team is currently based in a city on the Mexican border. Tijuana, not pre-war plans I will be training in Tucson, Arizona. This will be the team’s seventh appearance in the Men’s World Cup.
Some federation officials have also been denied visas to enter the United States, and Iran will play Belgium in Inglewood on June 21 and Egypt in Seattle on June 26.
World Cup team federations typically sell a quota of tickets to their most loyal fans who attend home and away matches.
“However, in an unexpected move, the quota given to the Iranian Football Federation has been withdrawn and in the current situation the federation is unable to provide even a single ticket to supporters of the national team,” the federation said.
Iranian residents have been subject to a travel ban from the US government since last year, and are unlikely to be able to obtain entry visas for the World Cup. It is unclear how many of the tickets allocated to Iran have been sold since the draw for the tournament was held in December for the country’s diaspora, including the United States.
If Iran’s tickets are cancelled, FIFA will have just a few days to sell about 5,600 tickets for Monday’s match between Iran and New Zealand. On Tuesday, the FIFA sales site showed rows of field-level seats available for purchase for $450 each, albeit dozens rather than hundreds.
Anyway, FIFA president Gianni Infantino said in 2017: — When U.S. soccer officials were preparing a joint bid with Canada and Mexico, which won the following year, they thought fans needed to have access to the tournament.
Infantino said nine years ago: “When it comes to FIFA competitions, it is clear to everyone, including supporters and team officials, that teams that qualify for the World Cup need access to their countries. Otherwise there would be no World Cup.” “That’s obvious.”
a hostile welcome
Ahead of Thursday’s game, the dominant topic is the United States’ policy toward World Cup attendees.
FIFA designated matches Referee from Somalia denied entry He left for the United States in Miami over the weekend and was removed from the 104-game tournament, which begins in Mexico City on Monday.
The Iraqi players were detained for several hours upon arrival in Chicago, and a photographer accompanying the delegation was refused entry.
“This confusion forces us to ask who is running the World Cup: FIFA or the US government with its racist immigration policies?” Piara Poire, head of FIFA’s anti-discrimination monitoring partner, said in a statement on Tuesday.
“Even before a ball was kicked, there was a pervasive feeling that this World Cup was far from being the celebration of global humanity that it was meant to be,” said Power, executive director of the Fair Network.
___
AP World Cup: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-world-cup
