After more than 40 years of sour relations and months of struggle to restore a nuclear deal, the United States and Iran are now set to meet on the football field at this year’s World Cup, having landed together in Group B in Friday’s draw.
The Iran and US coaches sidestepped the political fracas, saying they were focused on the tournament and its ability to bring people together. England and the winners of a European playoff — Ukraine, Scotland or Wales — complete the group.
The icy US-Iran relationship, characterised by diplomatic and even military confrontation in past years, has the potential to thaw somewhat by the time they play in Qatar on November 21. It could also get worse.
President Joe Biden’s administration is trying to restore a 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers, which would curb Tehran’s nuclear programme in exchange for lifting sanctions that have hammered Iran’s economy.
Despite the serious nature of the US-Iran rivalry, Washington’s diplomatic Twitter sphere erupted with jokes after the World Cup draw on Friday.
Ali Vaez, Crisis Group’s Iran project director, joked that the US government had set up a group to see what would happen in case of a drawn match.
“A US interagency working group has been set up in advance of the Iran game to determine if their offence can be deterred, the scope of follow-on negotiations in the event of a draw, and whether exchanging jerseys violates sanctions,” Vaez wrote.
Behnam Ben Taleblu, senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) think tank in Washington, said the Biden administration should use the chance to stand up for Iranian women.
The coaches meanwhile were intent on focusing on the match.
“I think it is about football at the end of the day and the best sign of friendship that you can make is competing hard on the field, in a fair way and that is what the World Cup is all about,” US coach Gregg Berhalter said.
“I am thinking only about football and not exterior things,” Iran’s coach Dragan Skocic, who is Croatian, said.
Team USA last faced Iran at the World Cup when they lost 2-1 to the Gulf nation in 1998 in France.
“I remember that well,” Berhalter said on a call with reporters. “I was doing commentary for a Dutch TV station.”
