The US denied visas to Mehdi Taj and over 20 managers of the Iranian Football Federation
State media in Iran confirmed on Tuesday, November 24, that the US State Department has definitively refused to grant visas to Mehdi Taj, the president of the Football Federation, and more than 20 other managers and individuals on the federation’s list for traveling to the US and attending the 2026 World Cup draw ceremony.
Previously, one of the managers from Iran’s Ministry of Sports and Youth had reported that Mehdi Taj was denied a visa by the US Embassy in Armenia due to his past involvement with the Islamic Republic system, and many others on the list also did not receive visas.
It has also been confirmed that only Amir Ghalenoei, head coach of Team Iran, Omid Jamali, the international relations officer of the Football Federation, Mehdi Kharati, the executive manager of Team Iran, and Siamak Gholikhani, Ghalenoei’s media advisor, have succeeded in obtaining visas from the US State Department. Other individuals, such as Mehdi Mohammadnabi, the vice president of the Iranian Football Federation, or Mehdi Malekabad, the head of the federation’s security department, are among those whom the Trump administration has refused to grant visas.