Iran's World Cup squad left Turkey for Mexico on Saturday, taking off under the shadow of a bitter diplomatic row between Tehran and Washington after the US refused to issue visas for some of the team's support staff.The dispute erupted just days before Thursday's kickoff of the 2026 World Cup, which is being jointly hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada.

Squad's visas for the US haven't been issued, with Marco Rubio saying IRGC-linked members won't be allowed to 'embed'.

Iran will fly to Mexico on Saturday to their home base at 2026 World Cup, while all their games are played in the US.