US, Iran war: 2026 World Cup goes on as planned too big to be postponed – FIFA

The 2026 FIFA World Cup will go ahead as planned, despite rumours of the global tournament being postponed.

That is according to FIFA’s chief operating officer Heimo Schirgi, who spoke to GIVEMESPORT, revealed that the tournament is too big to be postponed.

The 2026 tournament, to be held in the United States of America, Canada and Mexico, is now just three months away from kicking off.

This year’s event will be bigger than ever before, with the tournament expanding to incorporate 48 teams for the first time ever and it will be the first time ever the tournament has been hosted across three different countries.

A huge amount of planning has gone into the tournament, making it difficult to postpone now, despite the political conflict and unrest around the world in the build-up to the big kick-off.

A number of countries have been linked with boycotting the event, as tensions in the Middle East have raised questions over some nations’ involvement in the tournament.

War broke out between the USA and Iran more than a week ago, with both nations due to compete at this summer’s showpiece tournament. The Middle East nation are scheduled to face Belgium, New Zealand and Egypt in the group stage, but the conflict in the Middle East raises question marks over their participation.

US travel bans put in place by president Donald Trump have made it hard for some supporters to get out to watch their nations in action, too, while Haiti players have already had trouble getting visas to play in the USA long before the tournament begins, casting a huge dark cloud over the tournament before it has even begun.

But, speaking at the International Broadcast Centre in Dallas on Monday, Schirgi said the scale of the event makes postponement unrealistic.

When specifically asked about Iran, he said:

“At some stage, we will have a resolution, and the World Cup will go on, obviously. The World Cup is too big, and we ‌hope that everyone can ⁠participate that has qualified.”

FIFA says it is continuing to monitor the situation closely and is in contact with relevant authorities and football officials.

However, organisers currently have no plans to alter the tournament schedule.

Some figures in football have called for adjustments to matches linked to the regional conflict, citing travel and safety concerns. But FIFA maintains that preparations for the World Cup are continuing and the tournament remains on track to begin in June as scheduled.

About The Author

Dele Fashomi

Dele Fashomi, seasoned journalist and communication teacher, is a holder of Master of Arts degree in Communication and Language Arts from the University of Ibadan in 1992/93.

Earlier, he had bagged a Bachelor degree from the same university in 1984, after which he proceeded to the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos, in 1990, for a postgraduate diploma in Journalism.

He had done many courses in communication, including the EU-BBC Editing Course in 2002.

Mr. Fashomi combines effectively the practice, research and teaching of communication. And to date, he has published two academic works in communication: Issues in Communication Technology and Policy (2010) and Economic and Social Issues in Advertising and PR (2013).

He had his first break in the Nigerian media in Concord Newspapers in 1990 and today, he has over two and half decades experience earned in several newspapers.

He has been part of many start-ups, such as The Republic (1987), The Comet (1999), The Anchor 2001 – 2002; Sun Newspapers (2003); Westerner newsmagazine (2005 – 2010) as Editor; National Life (2011) as Sunday Editor, and Newswatch Newspapers (2012- 2016) as Daily Editor.

Dele Fashomi is now the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Newstide247.com newspaper online, which he started in July 2015. He is also into biography writing, with many books in his trail, some of which he wrote alone and one he co- authored with his mentor, Mr Dare Babarinsa, entitled:  Olabiyi Durojaiye – DARE TO BE DiFFERENT. He also guided and collaborated with Pa Olatunji Odusanya in writing his autobiography – AGAINST ALL ODDS. There are many other books in the works under his pen.

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