The hard truth is worth repeating: it is the first time in the World Cup’s 96-year history that a competing nation is at war with a host. Protests are planned at Iran’s opening game in Los Angeles against New Zealand on Monday and, as Kieran Jackson explains, the contest could even be halted

Flag bans, travel headaches and a religious regime video among bumps in road, as team prepares to be first to play in country with which it is at war

Athletes are caught between domestic demands for national unity, and diaspora pressure to stand up to the Islamic Republic