Iran team thanks Mexico, questions World Cup fairness in farewell message from Tijuana

Iran's national football team thanked the people of Mexico for their hospitality while questioning the fairness of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in a farewell message released before departing Tijuana after its emotionally charged tournament campaign.

The statement, issued in the team's final hours in the Mexican border city, expressed gratitude to the people of Tijuana for welcoming the squad throughout its 24-day stay, while renewing concerns over the treatment Iran received during the tournament.

"To the noble people of Mexico and the city of Tijuana, thank you," the message began.

The team said Mexico had demonstrated that hosting a World Cup was about more than stadiums and tickets.

"You showed us that hosting the World Cup is not just about stadiums and tickets; it is about respect, humanity and dignity," the statement read.

"We will never forget the kindness of the people of Tijuana. From today, Mexico is not only our host, but also our second country and our second team."

2026 World Cup: Iran prepares to depart Mexico after 24-day stay in Tijuana

Iran

Iran spent the tournament based in Tijuana after logistical complications and US visa denials forced the squad to relocate from its original training camp in Arizona.

Several members of Iran's delegation were denied US visas, leaving the team to train in Mexico and commute across the border for its matches in the United States. In the first two matches in Los Angeles, Iran was controversially allowed to enter the US only one night before the matches and was forced to leave for Mexico right after the games.

Despite those challenges, Amir Ghalenoei's side remained unbeaten in the group stage, drawing with New Zealand, Belgium and Egypt.

Iran appeared to have secured a historic place in the knockout rounds when Shoja Khalilzadeh scored a stoppage-time winner against Egypt, only for the goal to be controversially ruled out for offside following a lengthy VAR review.

The heartbreak deepened a day later when results elsewhere left Team Melli one place short of advancing among the tournament's best third-placed teams.

Reflecting on that outcome, the players said they were leaving the tournament with pride but also with unanswered questions.

"We leave this World Cup with pride, but with one serious question: Did all teams truly enjoy equal opportunities and equal standards?" the statement said.

The players noted that a series of decisions, planning choices and events had undermined their sense of fairness, adding that developments during the closing days of the group stage only reinforced that feeling.

"Perhaps one day history will judge who welcomed Iran's presence at this World Cup and who preferred this journey to end as soon as possible," the statement added.

The team also revisited a theme it had raised repeatedly throughout the tournament, saying fair play should be more than a slogan.

"For us, fair play is not just a slogan on advertising boards; it is the identity of football," the players wrote. "But this World Cup showed that there is still a great distance between beautiful slogans and genuine action."

Iran said it was leaving Tijuana convinced that the world had witnessed both the hardships endured by its football team and the resolve with which it responded.

"We leave Tijuana believing that the world saw both the injustice suffered by Iranian football and the strength of a people who, despite every difficulty, never traded away their honor and dignity."

The statement added that those celebrating Iran's elimination were the same people who had previously rejoiced at the suffering and deaths of Iranians, saying this revealed "the difference in how people view humanity."

The players concluded by turning from football to history, saying that while World Cups and administrators come and go, civilizations endure.

"World Cups come to an end. Administrators change. But civilizations such as Iran, Egypt and Mexico, built on truth, respect and human dignity, will endure throughout history," the statement said.

"The results of matches are part of football's history, but the honor of nations is part of the history of humanity."

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