FIFA Robbed Iran

The offside call was the tip of an iceberg unfair treatment, on and especially off the field

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FIFA robbed Iran. Now, I am not specifically addressing the close offside call against Egypt. That was just the tip of an iceberg of unfair treatment.

The unfair treatment dealt to Iran cannot be isolated to one arguable call, VAR margins of error or decisions made within the boundaries of the football pitch made by referees. But rather, verdicts issued by officials beyond the lines of the field and the walls of stadiums.

The referee decision overturning Iran’s goal in penalty time, which would have sealed a berth in the knockout stages and a dramatic victory, was not aberrant. It was the most recent, and perhaps the most forceful, part of a pattern of mistreatment inflicted on an Iranian team branded as a pariah instead of an equal member of the World Cup’s parade of nations.

FIFA robbed Iran long before the 93^rd minute of stoppage time against Egypt.

It robbed Iran of FIFA’s “promise of fair play” before Team Melli boarded their plane for the World Cup. It robbed Iran when it forcefully relocated their headquarters to Tijuana, Mexico from Tucson, Arizona.

FIFA robbed Iran when it obligated the team to travel to the match city shortly before kickoff, and immediately after the match was over. It robbed Iran of the opportunity to feature their players as sporting men instead of soldiers, with intense and unending media scrutiny that marked them as presumptive terrorists instead of footballers.

FIFA robbed the Iranian Football Federation from distributing tickets to their domestic fanbases, effectively adopting American wartime policy by branding traveling Iranians as national security risks instead of football enthusiasts.

FIFA robbed Iran by not only injecting politics into football, but even more perniciously, inserting anti-Iranian policy into their coordination of Iran’s Work Cup journey. Donald Trump was not merely the president of a host city, but for Gianni Infantino and the organization he presides over, a figure of appeasement. This was, most shamefully, exhibited by Trump being given FIFA’s inaugural peace prize.

For an organization that claims to veer from politics, FIFA entangled itself fully with Trump and his antagonistic policy toward Iran. The Iranian football team, despite their best efforts to “focus on football” and insistence that they are merely “sporting men,” were viewed as extensions of the Iranian government. This was, functionally, FIFA policy before and during the World Cup.

This policy, and the pattern of inequity it shaped, found its climax during the final match and final minutes of the match against Egypt. The damning verdict was issued long before the offside call.

The World Cup often promises that sport can transcend politics. Iran and Egypt demonstrate something more complicated. Football cannot escape politics because the players themselves live inside political realities. For ninety minutes, they compete for a place in the knockout rounds. They also compete to define how their nations are seen by the rest of the world.

Offside or not, the genuine controversy precedes that call. Iran fought to stay alive, on a playing field made uneven long before they set foot in the Seattle stadium. Even more importantly, they fought to be seen as footballers not enemy combatants, sporting men instead of suspects. Their resilience embodied what FIFA promised but incessantly defied, the aspiration that the beautiful game could transcend politics.

While heartbreaking, Iran exposed that football is pointedly political, and that FIFA is more instrument of western power than agent of fair play.

This World Cup highlights this more than any other previous tournament, with Team Melli standing as the principal victim. The offside call was just the latest blow, and for an Iranian team that now puts their knockout stage hopes in the hands of other teams, maybe the final blow.

FIFA robbed Iran. On and especially off the field. However, they could not rob Team Melli of their love for the game, their against-all-odds grit, and most of all, their dignity. For players, old and legions of new fans that championed the Iranian team during their World Cup journey, these are victories that neither FIFA, Trump and those conspiring with them can ever overturn.

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Khaled A. Beydoun is a law professor and writer. He is the author of the critically acclaimed book, American Islamophobia: Understanding the Roots and Rise of Fear. He will be covering the 2026 World Cup on Substack, social media, and beyond.