Iran’s national soccer team landed at Tijuana International Airport on June 7, setting up camp just south of the US border for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The team was supposed to be in Tucson, Arizona. Instead, an active military conflict between the United States and Iran made that plan untenable.
Iran will still play its three group-stage matches on US soil, but the team must enter and exit American territory on the same day for each game.
From Tucson to Tijuana: how it unraveled
Iran originally planned to base itself in Tucson, a logical choice given the proximity to World Cup venues. That fell apart when some team members were denied US visas, a direct consequence of the ongoing military tensions between Washington and Tehran. Iran’s football federation publicly criticized the US for what it called “obstruction.”
The solution was Centro Xoloitzcuintle in Tijuana, Baja California. FIFA confirmed the facility as Iran’s official base camp for the tournament. Before arriving in Mexico, the squad had been training in Antalya, Turkey. Captain Ehsan Haji Safi was among the players who touched down in Tijuana, where fans and members of the local Iranian expat community greeted the team at the airport.
