Politics·PodcastAs the world prepares to watch the FIFA World Cup 2026, the war in Iran and U.S. President Donald Trump's politics are already making the event more complicated.The Iran national team won't be able to stay in the U.S., despite playing three games thereCBC Radio · Posted: Jun 10, 2026 11:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 3 hours agoListen to this articleEstimated 4 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.Chelsea's Reece James lifts the trophy as President Donald Trump looks on following the Club World Cup final soccer match in East Rutherford, N.J., on July 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)As fans prepare to watch the FIFA World Cup 2026, the war in Iran and U.S. President Donald Trump's politics are already making the event more complicated. The Iranian national soccer team has been told it won't be allowed to stay in the U.S., with the exception of its three scheduled matches there. The rest of the time the team will stay in Mexico. Former FIFA president pans mixing soccer with politics, blasts U.S. ahead of World CupIran's national soccer team to commute to U.S.-hosted World Cup games from MexicoAnd Omar Artan, who was going to be the first referee from Somalia to officiate at a World Cup, was denied entry to the U.S. and has been cut from the tournament.In this episode of Two Blocks from the White House, Washington correspondents Katie Simpson, Paul Hunter and Willy Lowry dive into the politics of sport and ask: Can Trump ride the World Cup wave? We've included some highlights below, edited for length and clarity. For the full discussion, listen and follow the podcast.LISTEN | Trump takes aim at sports, from the World Cup to NBA finals:Two Blocks from the White House25:58Trump takes aim at sports, from the World Cup to NBA finalsWilly Lowry: This is the first time that we will ever see this at a World Cup where the host country is of course at war with Iran, and it's adding a whole level of intrigue and drama to the event. There's questions around visas. The Iranians have had to move their training facility from Tucson, Ariz., to Tijuana, Mexico. And here's something that's also potentially wild. They could meet in the first knockout round if both finished second in their group, they're on a collision course and they'd play July 3rd. I mean, that would be quite something ... It's happened twice before. Each side has won once so maybe it's the best out of three.Katie Simpson: On the eve of America's birthday.Willy Lowry: Let's dive a little bit more into the visa restrictions for the Iranian team. What exactly is happening? How are the Iranians being treated differently from other countries?Katie Simpson: So Iranian officials are accusing the U.S. of discrimination and malice with how this has all played out. They say members of the delegation have not been granted visas to enter the U.S., whether it comes to the managers or other parts of the delegation. They have their first match against New Zealand in Los Angeles, and as the team was preparing to get ready for this, they learned that the players are only allowed into the U.S. the day before the match. So, Iran says, look, not everyone in the delegation is going to get a visa so that they can enter the United States. They say that the team is only being allowed in the day before the match. Willy, you mentioned that originally they were supposed to be training in Arizona, that's where they'd be set up as they go through this tournament, but instead they are now in Mexico. Now, according to CNN, U. S. officials say that ... everyone who needs a visa has one and that the team can still participate, but an official told CNN, "We will not allow the Iranian team to abuse this system to sneak terrorists into the United States under false pretenses."And Marco Rubio ... the U.S. Secretary of State, he said that anyone who's linked to Iran's Revolutionary Guard can't enter. So that is what the Americans are saying. Iran argues that the Americans are trying to penalize or hurt or inflict malice upon the Iranian team. And that's sort of where the tensions are in this moment.Paul Hunter: So no politics at all really.Katie Simpson: Yeah, why would there be politics in anything? There's never politics in sport, right?