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Iran's team is getting its wish and will be allowed to arrive in Seattle two days before its final World Cup group stage game there, the Department of Homeland Security confirmed.Iran can travel from its base camp in Tijuana, Mexico, on Wednesday, June 24, according to Politico. Team Melli plays Egypt on Friday in a game that could determine whether it reaches the knockout rounds for the first time in seven World Cup appearances."The overall security measures and protocol are the same,” a DHS spokesperson said. “We remain committed to providing the safest tournament possible for players, staff, and fans alike.”Iran coach Amir Ghalenoei had said before Team Melli played Belgium on Sunday, June 21, that he'd been told the restrictions would be loosened for the team's last group-stage game, and that he hoped this was true."It appears they’re allowing us to allow us to go to Seattle earlier. I only wish they’d allowed us to come earlier for the first two games," he said through a translator. "They robbed us of all these opportunities. Yet we are very hopeful because we heard we can go to Seattle two days earlier."I think (the travel restrictions) are injustice," he added. "We hope that such behavior is not repeated in the future.""Team Melli" has been under heavy restrictions as a result of the political turmoil between the Iranian regime and the U.S. government. The team had to move its base camp from Tucson, Arizona, to Tijuana at the eleventh hour and several members of its delegation, including the federation president, were denied visas.But the most onerous to the team has been DHS' refusal to allow Iran to come to the United States earlier for its games. Iran arrived in Los Angeles about 24 hours before its first game, and only 16 hours ahead of its second game."We don't ask for much. We just ask for the same procedure for all the other 47 teams," midfielder Alireza Jahanbakhsh said after Iran held Belgium to a scoreless draw on Sunday, June 21."I hope we can go (to Seattle) as soon as possible to adapt to the situation in the city and to the place where we're going to play," he said. "That's just a fairness, I think, for all the teams. We're not asking for much."Buy Iran World Cup tickets!While other teams have been arriving about 24 hours before their games and leaving right after, the difference is it has been their choice. Iran's restrictions are the result of politics."You cannot deny that our situation has (not) been the same as all the other teams," midfielder Saeid Ezatolahi said before Iran's second game, against Belgium. Ghalenoei and his players have been lobbying, publicly and privately, for the restrictions to be eased since the tournament began, saying they have been affecting their play. They have raised the issue with media before and after games.When FIFA president Gianni Infantino visited the team's locker room after their opener, a 2-2 draw with New Zealand, they asked him to intercede on their behalf. But without saying so specifically, Ghalenoei made it clear that he blamed DHS, not FIFA, for the restrictions."I think Mr. Infantino and FIFA tried to minimize the problems we have faced," he said Saturday, June 20. "It wasn’t helping as such, but I think FIFA did its utmost to minimize the problems we were facing."
