Donald Trump said she should not come because she would not be safe in the United States.

Iran's participation in the World Cup seemed to be slipping further away on Thursday, with Donald Trump stating that Team Melli players would not be "safe" if they came to the United States.

"Iran's national team is welcome at the World Cup, but I really don't think the players' presence is appropriate, for their own lives and safety," Trump said on his Truth Social network on the 13th day of the Middle East war.

The United States and Israel launched a major air offensive on Iran on February 28, decapitating the political and military leadership of the Islamic Republic in the first hours by killing its supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in a strike.

"No one can exclude the Iranian national team from the World Cup," Team Melli stated on its Instagram account in response to Trump's statements.

“The World Cup is a historic and international event, and its governing body is FIFA, not an individual or a country. The Iranian national team, with strength and a series of decisive victories, was among the first teams to qualify for this major event. No one can exclude the Iranian national team from the World Cup; the only country that could be excluded is the one that holds the title of ‘host’ while lacking the capacity to ensure the safety of the teams participating in this global event,” the Iranian national team wrote on its official account.

This message was shared by Iranian national team coach Amir Ghalenoei on his Instagram account.

Large Iranian community

The American president did not specify in his brief message what dangers the Iranian national team faced. They are scheduled to play their group matches in the west of the country, home to a very large and long-established Iranian community dating back to the Islamic Revolution, a community largely loyal to the monarchy overthrown in 1979.

Iran is scheduled to face New Zealand and Belgium in Group G in Los Angeles, followed by Egypt in Seattle. Their tournament base camp is expected to be located in Tucson, Arizona.

FIFA did not immediately respond to AFP's requests for comment, but the head of the international body, Gianni Infantino, had assured on Wednesday that Donald Trump had promised him, during a meeting the previous day in Washington, to welcome the team to the World Cup (June 11-July 19).

“During our discussions, President Trump reaffirmed that the Iranian team was of course welcome to participate in the tournament in the United States,” which is co-hosting the event alongside Mexico and Canada, the Italian-Swiss leader wrote on his Instagram account. The White House confirmed his remarks.

Iranian Sports Minister Ahmad Doyanmali, on the other hand, believed that "given" the Israeli-American strikes on his country since February 28, the security conditions surrounding Team Melli were not met for participation in the competition.

The players "are absolutely not safe," he told Iranian television, explaining that "given the harmful actions (of the United States), it is impossible for us to participate in this tournament."

In the evening, the American president sought to reassure the public in a new message on Truth Social regarding the safety of the tournament, which is set to host a record 48 teams. The World Cup "will be the biggest and safest sporting event in American history," he asserted, adding: "All players, officials, and fans will be treated like the STARS they are!"

Find a replacement urgently

If Iran were to withdraw, a first for a country that qualified for the World Cup since 1950, FIFA would have to find a replacement less than three months before the start of the competition.

On Monday, Donald Trump voiced his support for the Iranian women's national team players who had refused to sing the national anthem before an Asian Cup match in Australia. He asked the authorities in Canberra to grant them political asylum instead of sending them back to Iran where they would "very likely have been killed."

The silence of the female footballers had been interpreted as an act of rebellion, with a presenter on state television accusing them of being "traitors in wartime".

Six members of the team were subsequently granted asylum in Australia. The rest of the delegation, which initially numbered 26, left the country on Tuesday evening.