Iran football chief rejected Canadian PM’s phone call after insulting treatment

The head of Iran’s football federation, Mehdi Taj, refused a request by Canadian officials to speak with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau after Iranian delegates were subjected to “insulting” treatment by border officers, the federation spokesman has revealed.

The incident led to Iran being the only absentee from the 211-member FIFA congress in Vancouver on Thursday, as the entire delegation cut short their trip and returned home.

Amirmahdi Alavi, the FFIRI spokesman, detailed the events that forced Taj and his colleagues to abandon their onward journey after landing in Toronto.

“When they entered the country, the hosts held up the Iranian delegation for hours in a disrespectful manner,” Alavi told Iranian media.

He said Taj was asked an offensive question about one of Iran’s proud armed forces branches, a clear reference to Canada’s 2024 blacklisting of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps as a “terrorist organization.”

“The head of the federation responded with a beautiful and thought-provoking statement, declaring that Iran has 90 million members of the IRGC, all of whom stand proudly by their country,” Alavi said.

Taj had traveled to Canada purely for sports as AFC vice-president, the spokesman added.

‘Terrorists are those who killed Minab kids’

Alavi strongly rejected the Canadian government’s characterization of Iran’s security forces.

“The term ‘terrorist’ applies to those who, in a savage aggression against our country, martyred nearly 186 students at the Shajareh Tayyebeh school in Minab, martyrs we can never forget, including dear Makan Nasiri, who at seven years old is still missing,” he said.

Alavi said that while the Iranian delegation was in Istanbul on their way back, FIFA Secretary General Mattias Grafstrom called Taj two or three times via video link to condemn Canada’s actions.

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“The head of the federation criticized FIFA’s weak stance, telling him: ‘When you can’t protect the head of a federation, how can we be sure that players will not face the same treatment?’” Alavi recounted.

He added that Taj told Grafstrom that FIFA is “too intimidated by America, and whatever you are told, you say ‘yes.’”

According to the spokesman, FIFA has since sent an official letter apologizing, condemning Canada’s behavior, and inviting Taj to a special meeting to discuss guarantees for the national team’s participation in the World Cup, including the presence of journalists, fans, players and officials.

FIFA faces pressure to ensure fair World Cup

Alavi noted that even an official from the host country admitted that its actions were influenced by Zionist-linked media networks spreading fake news.

“Now FIFA must step in forcefully to defend the right to a safe World Cup, something the international community fully expects,” he said.

The diplomatic clash and the US-Israeli war of aggression against Iran have cast serious doubt over Iran’s participation in the 2026 World Cup, co‑hosted by Canada, Mexico and the United States.

Iran’s Sports Minister Ahmad Donyamali recently hinted that the team could skip the event due to the lack of security, saying “fundamentally, the conditions for participation do not exist.”

Iranian officials have demanded guarantees that only Iran’s official flag will be displayed during matches and that the safety of players, journalists and fans will be ensured.

Despite the war, which has shuttered the domestic league for more than 40 days, Iran’s national football team has continued training camps.

The team has named its convoy “Minab 168” in tribute to the schoolchildren killed in the US-Israeli airstrikes on the southern Iranian city on the first day of the war.

The unprovoked US-Israeli aggression began on February 28, which included the assassination of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, and strikes on nuclear facilities, schools, hospitals and residential areas. Iran’s armed forces have responded with 100 waves of retaliatory strikes under Operation True Promise 4.

The World Cup is scheduled to take place in June and July across Canada, Mexico and the United States.

Iran has been drawn into Group B alongside Argentina and two other teams yet to be determined.

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