On June 16, local time, Iran played New Zealand in the Group G opener at the Los Angeles Stadium in California. In the same group, Belgium and Egypt also ended their match in a 1-1 draw, resulting in all four teams in Group G sharing one point each.
This result continued the unbeaten streak of Asian teams in the North America World Cup. Earlier, South Korea defeated the Czech Republic 2-1, Australia beat Turkey 2-0, and both Japan (2-2 against the Netherlands) and Qatar (1-1 with Switzerland) secured points against strong opponents.
Iran faced significant hurdles in participating in this World Cup due to the impact of recent conflicts and diplomatic tensions with the U.S. Initially, the Iranian national team planned to set up their base camp in Tucson, Arizona, but after the outbreak of war and subsequent visa denials, they had to relocate their training to Tijuana, Mexico. Additionally, 12 key support staff members were denied entry, leaving only four to assist the team.
Notably, Iran entered the U.S. the day before the match against New Zealand on a one-night visa and had to return to Mexico immediately after the game. The distance from Tijuana to the Los Angeles Stadium is approximately 225 kilometers (140 miles), and travel, including flights, took about five hours.
Despite these adversities, Iran demonstrated resilience. They conceded an early goal to New Zealand in the seventh minute but equalized in the 32nd minute when Saman Goddos scored after receiving a pass from Ramin Rezaeian.
In the second half, Iran fell behind again in the 54th minute but equalized once more in the 64th minute with a header from Mohammad Mohebi. Iran maintained pressure through stoppage time but could not convert additional scoring opportunities, settling for a 2-2 draw.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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