US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has stated that Iranian football players will be welcomed at this year’s World Cup.
Rubio made this announcement on Thursday, clarifying that the United States government is not in favor of a suggestion that Italy could replace them in the tournament.
While addressing reporters in the Oval Office, Rubio refuted claims that the government had requested the Iranian team to refrain from attending the World Cup.
However, he cautioned that the US might still prohibit entry to certain members of the Iranian delegation whom it deems to have connections with Tehran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which is classified as a terrorist organization by Washington and several other nations.
“No one from the US has informed them that they cannot attend,” Rubio remarked regarding Iran’s participation in the World Cup.
“The issue with Iran does not lie with their athletes, but rather with some of the other individuals they may wish to bring along, some of whom are linked to the IRGC,” Rubio explained. “We may not be able to permit their entry, but this does not apply to the athletes themselves.”
Rubio’s comments were in response to a reported suggestion from Italy-born US special envoy, Paolo Zampolli, who informed the Financial Times that he had proposed the idea of Italy taking Iran’s place in the World Cup to US President Donald Trump and FIFA, the governing body of football worldwide.