Tehran: The Iranian Football Federation announced today, Thursday, its boycott of the World Cup draw ceremony scheduled to take place in Washington, D.C., on December 5. A statement by the Iranian Federation's administration confirmed that "none of the Iranian officials will participate in the World Cup draw ceremony to be held next week in the United States."

According to National Iraqi News Agency, the decision was made after the U.S. State Department tightened visa requirements for most of the Iranian football federation officials who had applied for visas to attend the World Cup draw ceremony. FIFA is scheduled to conduct the 2026 World Cup draw at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on Friday, December 5, in Washington, D.C.