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Updated : Mar 06, 2026 10:44 IST , TUCSON – 4 MINS READ
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Iran is scheduled to play Belgium, Egypt and New Zealand in the group stages of the FIFA World Cup 2026. | Photo Credit: AFP
Eighteen months of preparation hang in the balance at a Tucson-based multi-use sports facility, where organisers say they remain in daily contact with FIFA about hosting Iran’s national football team, even as geopolitical turmoil threatens to upend their World Cup plans.
Iran is scheduled to play its World Cup group stage matches on U.S. soil — two in Los Angeles and one in Seattle — with Tucson’s sprawling Kino Sports Complex selected as the team’s base camp training site for the June 11-July 19 tournament.
The Kino Sports Complex, which opened in 1998 and was originally built as a home for Major League Baseball Spring Training, spans more than 300 acres and has 22 football fields | Photo Credit: REUTERS
But those plans were thrown into doubt when the U.S.-Israeli campaign against Iran began last weekend with strikes that killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
The campaign entered its sixth day on Thursday.
“We do know there’s a lot of geopolitical activities going on right now,” Sarah Horvath, director of the Kino Sports Complex, told Reuters. “That being said, we are in communication daily with FIFA. Team Iran is still coming here as of right now, we look forward to hosting them.”
Iran qualified for its fourth consecutive World Cup and was drawn into Group G alongside Belgium, Egypt, and New Zealand.
Teams were able to choose from a curated list provided by FIFA which cities they wanted to use as training camps and it was announced last month that Iran, which is 20th in the world rankings, selected the Kino Sports Complex.
The venue, which opened in 1998 and was originally built as a home for Major League Baseball Spring Training, spans more than 300 acres and has 22 football fields, including a professional level football stadium, among its amenities. It is also home to USL League Two side FC Tucson.
Sarah Horvath reassures that as of March 5, Iran remains well on schedule to arrive at the facility to train for the FIFA World Cup 2026. | Photo Credit: REUTERS
“Having a World Cup team train at our complex is a big economic driver for the area,” said Horvath, who added that the process to be officially selected as a base camp took 18 months.
She acknowledged there would be “a lot of sadness and an economic hit in Southern Arizona” if the training base goes unused, but expressed hope for a backup plan.
“If it’s not (Iran), we’re hopeful that we’ll be able to get a team here.”
FIFA did not immediately respond when asked for the latest on Iran’s World Cup status and whether another team would be assigned to the Tucson facility if they do not attend.
Horvath emphasised that security measures would be identical for any team training at Kino and that they are coordinating with local and federal law enforcement partners.
Earlier this week, Iran’s football chief Mehdi Taj indicated that U.S. and Israeli attacks “did not augur well” for the World Cup, adding that senior government officials would evaluate the situation before deciding on any action.
In recent decades, there has not been an instance when a qualified team has failed to take part in the World Cup finals. In order to retain the full 48-team World Cup field, Iran would almost certainly be replaced if it withdrew from the tournament.
For now, Tucson waits — hopeful but uncertain — as global events far beyond its control determine whether months of preparation will culminate in welcoming a World Cup team, or scrambling to fill an unexpected void.
Jon Pearlman, founder and president of FC Tucson, which was among the community partners involved in the bid process to make Kino a training base, struck an optimistic tone regarding Iran.
“We’re very optimistic that they’re going to train here. We think it’s going to happen,” he said, citing ongoing conversations with Horvath and FIFA.
Pearlman feels despite the challenges in terms of a conflict, Iran will train at the facility in Arizona before the FIFA World Cup. | Photo Credit: REUTERS
Still, Pearlman acknowledged his group always understood hosting Iran would be a “challenging situation” given existing tensions.
His focus, he said, remains on what they can control: ensuring any visiting team is safe and viewed “in the best sense that they’re here for sporting purposes, not political ones, to compete on the field and to honour all the people of their country.”
But not everyone feels as confident that Iran will soon be at the complex sharpening its touch before the World Cup.
Lucas Gebremariam, owner of nearby Zerai’s International Bar, said while he would welcome the Iranian team for meals at his establishment, he remains doubtful that it will arrive in Tucson.
“Honestly, it feels pretty certain that they will not come,” Gebremariam said. “I’m not holding out much hope for, or optimism, that they will end up coming with the political climate the way it is right now.”
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Published on Mar 06, 2026
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