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Iran’s preparations for the 2026 FIFA World Cup are underway, but the political situation surrounding the nation continues to overshadow the footballing narrative.

The upcoming World Cup marks Iran’s fourth consecutive appearance at the tournament finals.

Despite consistent qualifications, Iran have never advanced beyond the group stage in any of their past campaigns. They will aim to break that streak at the 2026 World Cup, although they enter the competition with one of the youngest and least experienced squads in the field.

Placed in Group G, Belgium are widely seen as favourites, while Iran will have to earn positive results against Egypt or New Zealand to record their best-ever finish at a World Cup.

However, uncertainty looms over Iran’s participation. The ongoing conflict, its humanitarian toll, and the fact that one of the host countries has attacked Iranian cities and expressed hostility towards their presence have cast a shadow over the entire tournament.

Iran’s recent form has been unconvincing. They faced Cape Verde, Uzbekistan, and Nigeria in their last three fixtures—none of which ended in victory. These results raise concerns about their competitiveness ahead of the summer.

Most members of Ghalenoei’s current squad play in clubs across the Middle East, with a few based in Europe, including captain Mehdi Taremi. The Olympiacos striker remains Iran’s third-highest all-time scorer with 56 goals.

Ali Daei continues to hold the national record with 108 goals in 148 appearances, making him the third-highest goal scorer in international football history, behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

Goalkeepers: Alireza Beiranvand (Tractor), Payam Niazmand (Persepolis), Hossein Hosseini (Sepahan), Mohammad Khalife (Aluminium Arak)

Defenders: Saleh Hardani (Esteghlal), Ali Nemati (Foolad), Shojae Khalilzadeh (Tractor), Milad Mohammadi (Persepolis), Hossein Kanaanizadegan (Persepolis), Aria Yousefi (Sepahan), Danial Esmaeilifar (Tractor), Ehsan Hajsafi (Sepahan), Ramin Rezaeian (Foolad), Abolfazl Jalali (Esteghlal), Saman Fallah (Esteghlal), Hossein Abarghouei (Persepolis)

Midfielders: Saeid Ezatolahi (Shabab Al Ahli), Saman Ghoddos (Kalba), Mohammad Ghorbani (Al Wahda), Mehdi Hashemnejad (Tractor), Omid Noorafkan (Sepahan), Hadi Habibinejad (Chadormalou), Alireza Jahanbakhsh (Dender), Mahdi Torabi (Tractor), Ali Gholizadeh (Lech Poznan), Mohammad Mohebi (Rostov), Amirmohammad Razzaghinia (Esteghlal)

Forwards: Mehdi Taremi (Olympiacos), Amirhossein Hosseinzadeh (Tractor), Ali Alipour (Persepolis), Mehdi Ghayedi (Al-Nasr), Shahriyar Moghanlou (Kalba), Dennis Eckert (Standard Liege), Amirhossein Mahmoudi (Persepolis), Ehsan Mahroughi (Foolad)

World Cup 2026 Group G fixtures:

June 15, 2026: Iran vs New Zealand – SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, United States

June 21, 2026: Belgium vs Iran – SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, United States

June 27, 2026: Egypt vs Iran – Lumen Field, Seattle, United States

Recent matches:

March 27, 2026: Iran 1–2 Nigeria – Corendon Airlines Park, Antalya, Turkey

November 18, 2025: Uzbekistan 0–0 Iran (4–3 pens) – Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain, UAE

November 13, 2025: Cape Verde 0–0 Iran (4–5 pens) – Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain, UAE

October 14, 2025: Iran 2–0 Tanzania – Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran

October 10, 2025: Russia 2–1 Iran – VTB Arena, Moscow, Russia

June 10, 2025: Iran 3–0 North Korea – Imam Reza Stadium, Mashhad, Iran

June 5, 2025: Qatar 1–0 Iran – Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar

March 25, 2025: Iran 2–2 Uzbekistan – Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran

March 20, 2025: Iran 2–0 United Arab Emirates – Azadi Stadium, Tehran, Iran

Iran have been drawn in Group G for the 2026 World Cup.

Head coach Amir Ghalenoei is currently in his second tenure leading the national side.

During his first spell between 2007 and 2008, he managed 17 matches, losing only once. In his current stint, Iran have suffered only a few defeats, although off-field circumstances have clearly impacted their performance.

Italian analyst and coach Antonio Gagliardi, who has previously worked with Italy’s national team and Juventus, has joined the Iranian backroom staff and is expected to take over after the World Cup.

Mehdi Taremi joined Olympiacos last summer to secure regular playing time ahead of the World Cup. In 35 appearances for the Greek club, he has scored 16 goals, including 10 in 19 league matches and one in the Champions League against Real Madrid.

If Iran are to progress beyond the group stage for the first time in their history, Taremi’s form will be crucial.

— Report by Ewan Gennery, Freelance Writer