The Financial Times, citing international media reports, has revealed that Paolo Zamboli, an envoy linked to US President Donald Trump’s administration, has put forward a proposal to FIFA to replace the Iranian national team with the Italian national team in the 2026 World Cup finals.

According to the newspaper, the proposal was made during informal discussions, based on a personal view that the Italian team, as a four-time former world champion, is “more deserving of participation” than Iran, without any regulatory basis or official decision from FIFA.

In contrast, official Iranian sources have emphasised in recent days that the Iranian national team remains committed to participating in the 2026 World Cup, stressing that no entity has the authority to exclude it from the tournament, and that preparations are continuing as normal.

Under the joint hosting arrangement for the tournament between the United States, Canada and Mexico, all three of the Iranian national team’s group stage matches against New Zealand, Belgium and Egypt will be held in the US.

This controversy comes against a backdrop of political tension and renewed fears of a resurgence of conflict between Washington and Tehran, lending a political dimension to the proposal, which reports describe as “unworkable” so far, given the lack of any official stance from FIFA.

FIFA has confirmed, according to the newspaper, that Trump’s demands have been ignored. There have been no changes to the list of teams participating in the 2026 World Cup, and that all qualified teams, including Iran, remain officially listed.

Featured image via the Canary

By Alaa Shamali

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