<ul><li><p>No one from US ‘told them they can’t come’, Rubio says</p></li><li><p>Delegation members with ties to IRGC may be barred</p></li></ul><p>Iran’s footballers will be welcome at this year’s World Cup, secretary of state Marco Rubio said Thursday, distancing the United States government from a proposal that Italy could take their place in the tournament.</p><p>Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Rubio denied that the government had asked the Iranian team not to come to the World Cup – but warned the US may yet bar entry to members of the Iranian delegation it judged to have ties to Tehran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which is regarded as a terrorist organisation by Washington and several other governments.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/apr/24/iran-welcome-at-us-world-cup-2026-italy">Continue reading...</a>