Iran captain Mehdi Taremi has launched a scathing criticism of FIFA and its president Gianni Infantino, describing the ongoing World Cup as a “disaster” and accusing the organisers of mishandling visa and logistical complications that have plagued his team. Head coach Amir Ghalenoei also appealed to FIFA to take a stronger stance against the tournament hosts, claiming that Iran had been treated unjustly.

Iran’s growing frustrations at the World Cup reached a boiling point as their off-field struggles overshadowed a hard-fought draw against Egypt. Taremi publicly voiced his discontent with FIFA’s handling of the situation, revealing that visa issues had prevented 11 senior officials from travelling with the squad. Frequent travel between their base in Tijuana and matches held in the United States has also caused serious logistical strain. Taremi said that despite assurances from Infantino after their opening match against New Zealand, none of the issues had been resolved.

Speaking after the game, Taremi expressed his disappointment with FIFA, accusing the governing body of breaking its earlier promises. He lamented the absence of essential logistics and recovery staff due to ongoing visa delays and criticised the team’s constant travel demands.

“It’s a disaster World Cup; a disaster,” Taremi told The Athletic. “FIFA should be solving every problem here, but unfortunately, they couldn’t fix anything from the start. Mr Infantino came to our dressing room after the first match against New Zealand and said, ‘It’s just the beginning.’

“We don’t have our logistics team here because they don’t have visas. How can it be that we always have to travel from Tijuana? We love the people in Tijuana, we love Mexico — they’re humble and kind — but for professional players competing in a major tournament, this is not acceptable.

“It’s not fair. From our point of view, it’s simply not fair. Maybe FIFA thinks it is, but who’s going to help us? If they want us out, fine — we’ll leave. But this isn’t fair. We don’t have recovery or logistics staff to support us. We keep complaining, but nobody listens or helps us.”

Head coach Amir Ghalenoei echoed his captain’s frustration and shifted his criticism towards the United States as one of the co-hosts. The team had to relocate their training base from Arizona to Mexico just before the tournament due to the ongoing military tension between the U.S. and Iran — a move that, according to the coaching staff, has negatively affected the players’ recovery and preparation.

“I know Mr Infantino tried his best to reduce the problems as much as he could, but the host has not treated us well,” Ghalenoei told The Guardian. “I urge FIFA not to allow hosts to treat teams and players this way in future tournaments. I hope Mr Infantino will actually stand up to this kind of behaviour.

“The way they have treated us has been terrible, and we want the world to be aware of it. They didn’t let us arrive two weeks earlier or even two days before each match, and that’s really hurt us. We’ve also been dealing with a war situation. Despite all these challenges, we’ve managed to perform admirably, and the world is proud of Iranians and our team. That, I believe, is our greatest achievement in spite of all the obstacles placed before us.”

Despite the ongoing turmoil, Iran’s hopes of qualifying for the round of 32 remain alive. They still have a mathematical chance to advance as one of the best third-placed teams, though the players and staff will be hoping that the off-field issues do not derail their focus as they await the results of the remaining group-stage fixtures.