MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Monday that she has “no issue” with her country hosting Iran’s World Cup team after its training base was moved from the United States to Mexico for the summer soccer competition.The team will still play its matches in the U.S. but its base has been moved to Tijuana, Mexico, just south of San Diego, California, according to Iran’s soccer federation. The development comes against the backdrop of the war in Iran, which the U.S. and Israel launched on Feb. 28. Sheinbaum said at a news conference Monday that she was told by a FIFA representative the U.S. was reluctant to have the Iranian soccer team spend time outside the games on U.S. territory.“The United States doesn’t want the Iranian national team to stay overnight in the United States,” Sheinbaum told reporters. She said a FIFA representative had then asked, “Can they stay overnight in Mexico?”
“And we said, ‘Yes, no problem. We have no issue with that’,” she said.Iran’s soccer team is slated to play matches in Inglewood, California, against New Zealand on June 15 and against Belgium six days later, before facing Egypt on June 26 in Seattle.
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Before the war broke out, the team was originally planned to set up its base in Tucson, Arizona. But with tensions simmering, Iran’s team moved its base to Tijuana in Mexico, Sheinbaum said, confirming an announcement by the Iranian federation over the weekend. The federation said the Iranians had received approval from FIFA, though it has not confirmed the move.
