Iran’s World Cup team departs for training camp in Mexico, while 14 accompanying officials remain stranded due to U.S. visa rejections

According to the Associated Press, Iran’s national men’s football team departed from Turkey on Saturday for its training base in Tijuana, Mexico, in preparation for three World Cup group-stage matches to be held in the United States later this month. However, Iran’s state television reported that 14 administrative and logistical officials traveling with the team—including Hedayat Mombeini, Secretary-General of the Iranian Football Federation, and Vice President Mehdi Mohammad Nabi—have yet to obtain U.S. visas.