Iranian state media has warned that the United States is taking a "big gamble" ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup 2026 after US forces resumed strikes on Iran despite ongoing negotiations and a fragile ceasefire. In a social media post on Tuesday, Nour News, an outlet affiliated with Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said simultaneous military pressure and diplomatic talks with Tehran carried significant risks.
"If the #US bets on controlling oil & lowering gas prices pre-#World_Cup, it should know: simultaneous military pressure & talks with #Iran is a big gamble," the outlet wrote. The statement was also published in Persian, Russian and Hebrew. The post added: "Any miscalculation could make [President Donald] Trump a symbol of a costly, bitter mistake, a memory relived at every World Cup."
The comments came after theUS resumed military operationsagainst Iran on Monday, despite a ceasefire that has been in place since early April.
According to Captain Tim Hawkins, a spokesperson for United States Central Command, American forces carried out what he described as "self-defense strikes" targeting missile launch sites and Iranian vessels attempting to lay mines in southern Iran.
A US official told theWall Street Journalthat American forces sank two Iranian ships after Iran fired missiles at US aircraft. The US subsequently struck missile launchers near the southern port city of Bandar Abbas.
Iranian state media reported explosions in Bandar Abbas and several coastal areas near the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global shipping route that has become central to negotiations between Washington and Tehran.
Questions over Iran’s participation in the 2026 World Cup emerged after the initial US and Israeli strikes on Iran in February. The tournament, which will be jointly hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, is scheduled to run from 11 June to 19 July next year.
Iran is currently due to play two matches in Los Angeles and one in Seattle.
Shortly after the conflict began, US President Donald Trump said Iran would still be welcome to compete in the tournament, although he suggested the team should not remain in the United States "for their own life and safety".
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Monday that Iran’s national football team would play its matches in the US but remain based in Mexico after Washington declined to host the squad. Football officials have reportedly selected Tijuana as the team’s base.
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