FIFA World Cup: Iranian football team leave Turkey for Mexico

MEXICO CITY: The Iranian football team confirmed their participation in the FIFA World Cup, kicking off on June 11 in Mexico City, Mexico, at the iconic Estadio Azteca (Mexico City Stadium). The team have left Turkey for Mexico on Saturday after the squad’s US entry visas were successfully approved.

Iran’s World Cup football players are due to play their first Group G match on June 15 in the United States, while their remaining group-stage fixtures will also be held across host cities in the USA.

Despite early political tensions and protests regarding the matches, Iran will be holding its primary training base camp in Tijuana, Mexico, but the players will commute into the US for their matches.

How many teams are participating in the 2026 FIFA world cup?

This global governed mega tournament will host football’s playoffs for 48 teams, which is an increase of 16 teams compared to the 32 teams who played in previous editions.

These teams are divided into 12 groups from A to L, and each group contains 4 teams. Every team will play three group-stage matches after which key matches will begin.

How teams qualify for the knockout stage

The top two teams from each of the 12 groups will automatically advance to the knockout stage, accounting for 24 teams, according to the 2026 FIFA World Cup rules. These teams will be joined by the eight best third-placed teams, bringing the total number of teams in the knockout phase to 32.

Knockout format

The tournament then follows a straight knockout system:

Round of 32

Round of 16

Quarter-finals

Semi-finals

Third-place play-off

Final

Hosting Pattern

The highly anticipated 2026 FIFA World Cup is being co-hosted by United States, Mexico and Canada.

It may also be noted that this is the first World Cup in FIFA’s history to be hosted by three nations. The matches will be played across 16 host cities.

Distribution of matches

The United States will host the majority of matches, including all matches from the quarter-finals onward and the final.

Mexico hosts the opening match at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.

Canada hosts group-stage and selected matches in its host cities.

In short, this World Cup features 48 teams in 12 groups, with 104 matches played across three host countries from 11 June to 19 July 2026. A team reaching the final will play eight matches, one more than under the previous World Cup format.