Italian sports officials say four-time champion Italy is not interested in replacing Iran at the upcoming World Cup following a suggestion to that effect by a Trump administration official.
Iran has not withdrawn from the World Cup, and the team is preparing to play in the U.S. despite the war in the Middle East. FIFA has insisted its group stage games near Los Angeles and in Seattle will go ahead as planned in June.
Paolo Zampolli, a U.S. special envoy, confirmed to the Financial Times he had floated the idea of four-time winners Italy stepping in to Trump and to FIFA president Gianni Infantino.
In a phone interview with the Associated Press on Thursday, Zampolli emphasized that “my request is not a political request.” The ask, which was made to Trump and Infantino on Wednesday, was meant as a contingency plan in case Iran could not participate in the soccer tournament at the last minute.
“I had a dream,” Zampolli told the AP. “My request was for the Italian people and the American-Italian people.”
He said in the FT interview that, with four titles, the Italian national team’s appearance in the World Cup would be justified.
Italian officials pushed back hard at the suggestion.
“Italy’s possible re-qualification for the 2026 World Cup … is firstly, not possible and secondly, not appropriate,” Sports Minister Andrea Abodi told Sky News. “I don’t know what comes first. Qualification is on the pitch.”
Luciano Buonfiglio, the president of the Italian Olympic Committee, which oversees all sports in Italy, also dismissed the idea of taking Iran’s place.
“I would feel offended,” Buonfiglio said. “You need to deserve to go to the World Cup.”
Italy’s Finance Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti called the idea “shameful.”
While Iran was among the first teams to qualify for the World Cup, Italy missed out for the third consecutive tournament, resulting in the resignations of its national team coach and soccer federation president.
Iran are due to play their three group matches in the U.S., starting with a clash against New Zealand in Los Angeles on June 15. Should Iran and the U.S. finish second in their respective groups, they are on course to meet in the last 32 in Dallas.
Trump said Wednesday the U.S. had indefinitely extended a ceasefire with Iran while efforts for a lasting peace continue but has maintained a blockade on Iranian ports.
U.S. envoy Zampolli has long been a part of the Trump family orbit, having introduced then-Melania Knauss to Donald Trump at a New York Fashion Week party in 1998. He regularly posts on social media about his meetings with Infantino, calling him the “King of Soccer.”
Trump last year appointed him as special envoy for global partnerships.
In March, the New York Times reported that Zampolli had reached out to a top official at Immigration and Customs Enforcement, informing him that the mother of his child was in the country illegally as the two were locked in a custody dispute. She was ultimately deported.
The White House did not immediately return a request for comment. Its World Cup task force, housed under the Department of Homeland Security, said it had no comment. FIFA also would not comment.
The Iranian embassy in Rome denounced Zampolli’s remarks in a comment on X.
“Football belongs to the people, not to politicians,” the embassy said. “Italy earned its soccer prowess on the field, not thanks to political maneuvers. The attempt to exclude Iran from the World Cup shows only the ‘moral bankruptcy’ of the United States, which fears even the presence of 11 young Iranians on the field of play.”
Iran’s status at the World Cup, which starts in June, has been a source of debate and concern since the U.S. and Israel launched military attacks on the country in February.
FIFA has consistently said Iran will stick to the World Cup schedule decided last December, and refused to negotiate any suggestion of moving the team’s games to co-host Mexico.
Infantino stated again in during a CNBC forum in Washington, D.C., last week that Iran “for sure” would compete at the World Cup, having attended an Iran friendly in Türkiye last month.
Trump has given mixed signals on Iran’s participation, previously stating on one hand they were “welcome” but also adding it would be “inappropriate” for them to take part “for their life and safety.”
An Iranian government spokesperson said Wednesday that the men’s national team is preparing for “proud and successful participation” in its World Cup games in the U.S.
Iran earned one of eight guaranteed World Cup places allocated to the Asian Football Confederation. Should Iran pull out, in theory the replacement should be the United Arab Emirates, the highest-ranked Asian team that didn’t qualify.
One possible element of uncertainty is the language of the World Cup tournament rules.
FIFA wrote that it can decide to replace a withdrawn team “with another association,” though without specifying the replacement must come from the same continental confederation.
Information from PA and the Associated Press was used in this report.
