PARIS: FIFA Secretary-General Mattias Grafstrom described as &quot;excellent&quot; and &quot;constructive&quot; the meeting held on Saturday in Istanbul with the Iranian federation to ensure Iran&#39;s participation in the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The Iranians are scheduled to be based in the US and play all three of their group matches there, despite the war currently being waged in the Middle East. &quot;We&#39;ve had an excellent meeting, a constructive meeting together with the Iran FA,&quot; said Grafstrom. &quot;I think we&#39;re working closely together and looking very much forward to welcoming them to the World Cup. &quot;We&#39;ve had the opportunity to discuss some of the operational matters, like we do with every member association. &quot;But I&#39;m very happy that we were able to have this positive exchange, and both the Iran FA and FIFA are very happy with the meeting and looking forward to welcoming Team Melli in the USA, Canada and Mexico.&quot; The president of the Iranian Football Federation, Mehdi Taj, had said on Thursday that no visas had yet been issued for Iran&#39;s team. But he also described Saturday&#39;s meeting as &quot;positive and constructive&quot; without going into details. &quot;We discussed our concerns and expressed our joint commitment to ensure the smooth participation of Team Melli,&quot; he said. The meeting, which was held at the headquarters of the Turkish Football Federation, comes as the Iranian team prepares to leave on Monday morning for a training camp in Turkey before heading to the United States. Iran hope to play two friendlies in Antalya. They have already confirmed one match, against The Gambia, on May 29, said Sam Mehdizadeh, an Iranian-Canadian who heads a company that sets up friendlies for the team. Iran have qualified for their fourth consecutive finals and, when the squad reaches the US, will set up their base camp in Tucson, Arizona. They are due to kick off their World Cup campaign against New Zealand in Los Angeles on June 15, before facing Belgium in the same city and then Egypt in Seattle, in Group G.

In this handout picture provided by the Iranian presidency, Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian (C-L) poses for a group photo with players of the Iranian national football team during a farewell ceremony for them before their departure for the 2026 FIFA Wo

Football

Iran hope to play two friendlies in Antalya. They have already confirmed one match, against The Gambia, on May 29.

Iran have 'constructive' meeting with FIFA over World Cup preparations

PARIS: Lionel Messi&#39;s career seemed complete after he led Argentina to victory at the 2022 World Cup, but the motivation to keep playing is still there for him and his great rival Cristiano Ronaldo as the duo prepare to make history at this year&#39;s tournament in North America.&nbsp;This will be the last dance for Messi and Ronaldo, who will become the first players to appear in six different World Cups, two decades on from their fresh-faced debuts at the finals.&nbsp;They have since become icons far beyond the football pitch, two of the most recognisable people on the planet as they head into middle age and contemplate retirement.&nbsp;Messi appeared to suggest that there would not be much point in carrying on after he skippered Argentina to victory in Qatar.&nbsp;&quot;Obviously I wanted to finish my career with this. I can&#39;t ask for any more,&quot; he said after dragging Lionel Scaloni&#39;s side to victory over France on penalties in that World Cup final in Doha.&nbsp;&quot;My career is coming to an end because these are my final years. What more could there be after this?&quot;&nbsp;Plenty more, it turns out.&nbsp;Messi was in the middle of an underwhelming spell at Paris Saint-Germain then, and six months later he departed for Major League Soccer.&nbsp;There he is excelling with Inter Miami, with whom he won the MLS Cup last year.&nbsp;He might no longer be playing at the very highest level every week, but he remains crucial for Argentina.&nbsp;The Barcelona legend captained his country to victory at the Copa America in the US in 2024, and was the top scorer in South American World Cup qualifying.&nbsp;&quot;I love playing football, and I&#39;m going to do it until I can&#39;t anymore,&quot; he said recently.&nbsp;At one stage there were some doubts as to whether he would play at another World Cup, a tournament he first graced in 2006, when aged 18 he scored in a 6-0 demolition of Serbia and Montenegro in Gelsenkirchen.&nbsp;200 caps, goals record in sight&quot;I will do everything to make sure he is there,&quot; insisted Scaloni, with Messi now just two games away from reaching 200 caps.&nbsp;He is set to add to his record of 26 appearances in World Cup matches, including their run to the 2014 final in Brazil.&nbsp;Messi has 13 World Cup goals, meaning Miroslav Klose&#39;s record of 16 is within striking distance, especially as Argentina&#39;s group opponents do not appear the toughest.&nbsp;They will begin against Algeria and Austria before tackling Jordan in Dallas, three days after Messi&#39;s 39th birthday.&nbsp;He has a couple of years on Ronaldo, but the 41-year-old Portuguese talisman was determined to carry his international career on in the hope of landing the ultimate prize.&nbsp;Ronaldo was a teenager when he lost the Euro 2004 final with Portugal on home soil, but he made up for that by captaining them to victory at Euro 2016.&nbsp;Yet the World Cup has proven harder, at least after Portugal got to the 2006 semi-finals.&nbsp;Portugal have won only one World Cup knockout match since, when they hammered Switzerland 6-1 in 2022 with Ronaldo dropped to the bench.&nbsp;&nbsp;&#39;Exemplary commitment&#39;Roberto Martinez became coach after that and restored Ronaldo as the first-choice striker, which he remains despite not scoring at Euro 2024 when Portugal lost in the last eight.&nbsp;He is the most-capped men&#39;s player of all time with 226 international appearances, and the former Real Madrid and Manchester United superstar is now set to win the Saudi title with Al Nassr.&nbsp;Ronaldo confirmed recently this would be his last World Cup, insisting: &quot;I&#39;m going to be 41 years old and I think it will be the moment.&quot;&nbsp;Portugal, who go into a group with Colombia, Uzbekistan and DR Congo, are genuine contenders to win it even if there are doubts as to whether Ronaldo is holding back a talented squad.&nbsp;Personally, Ronaldo will be seeking to add to his eight World Cup goals, and finally get a first in the knockout stages.&nbsp;&quot;He is more than just a football player, but for the national team that is all he is,&quot; said Martinez in an interview with Portuguese broadcaster RTP.&nbsp;&quot;He is the captain and he shows exemplary commitment to his country. He is incredible.&quot;&nbsp;Lifting the World Cup at 41 would be quite the way for Ronaldo to finish &ndash;- and if both Portugal and Argentina top their groups, he and Messi would be on course to meet in the quarter-finals in Kansas City on July 11.

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are set for their sixth and final World Cup appearance in 2026, aiming to make history. Both legends remain key for Argentina and Portugal, with a potential quarter-final showdown possible in Kansas City.

The last dance: Messi and Ronaldo get ready for sixth and final World Cup

KINSHASSA: Delirious football fans took to the soaked streets of the capital, Kinshasa and danced into the night in the rain after the Democratic Republic of Congo reached the World Cup for the first time in 52 years. Defender Axel Tuanzebe, who plays in the Premier League for Burnley, was the hero with the only goal in a 1-0 win over Jamaica after extra time in an intercontinental playoff in Mexico on Tuesday. The central African nation will face Portugal, Colombia and Uzbekistan in Group K at the finals in North America this summer. At the 1974 finals in West Germany, the team competed as Zaire and were beaten by Scotland, Yugoslavia and Brazil. &quot;We gave it our all, right here in the rain!&quot; shouted Beni Ile, a fan in Kinshasa whose shoulders were draped in a soaked DRC flag. &quot;We won&#39;t be working on Wednesday! It&#39;s going to be a national holiday. We&#39;re going to celebrate and party all night long. &quot;We&#39;ve been waiting 50 years for this. We&#39;re staying out until dawn.&quot; It was a scene replicated across the city of 17 million people, where the final whistle in Guadalajara was greeted by a cacophony of banging pots, car horns and whistles. The win completed a dramatic qualification campaign for the team nicknamed the Leopards, who eliminated African football giants Nigeria and Cameroon on their way to Tuesday&#39;s playoff. As early as the morning of the big match, many residents of the DRC capital were already sporting the sky-blue jersey of their beloved national side. By evening, several hundred fans had gathered in a square in the city centre in anticipation of watching the game. Even as the rain bucketed down, the conclusion of the match after 120 nervy minutes was met with an outpouring of national pride and relief. It was also a rare moment of national unity in a country scarred by 30 years of conflict and the resurgence of the Rwandan-backed M23 armed group. &quot;It&#39;s truly exceptional, we are very proud of the Leopards today for this feat,&quot; said Merou, who comes from Goma, a major city in eastern DRC that fell into M23 hands in January 2025. &quot;This victory will unify the Congo. &quot;We hope the whole country will benefit from it,&quot; he added, standing in the pouring rain. Another overjoyed supporter, Maclain, said: &quot;We deserve a moment of happiness, away from the gunfire. &quot;We need to come together too.&quot;

Richard King of Jamaica is challenged by Axel Tuanzebe of Congo DR during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Play-Off tournament final match between Congo DR v Jamaica at Estadio Guadalajara on March 31, 2026, in Zapopan, Mexico. (Photo: AFP)

The central African nation will face Portugal, Colombia and Uzbekistan in Group K at the finals in North America this summer.

Articles tagged with "Football World Cup"

Iran have 'constructive' meeting with FIFA over World Cup preparations

The last dance: Messi and Ronaldo get ready for sixth and final World Cup

DR Congo fans dance in the rain after sealing World Cup spot

Iran have 'constructive' meeting with FIFA over World Cup preparations