Iran coach Amir Ghalenoei has named his 26-man squad for the 2026 World Cup, placing his faith in veterans Mehdi Taremi and Alireza Jahanbakhsh while leaving out Sardar Azmoun.
Azmoun, one of Iran’s most prolific strikers with 57 goals in 91 international appearances, was absent from the preliminary squad and failed to make the final cut despite public calls from Iran’s Vice President Abdolkarim Hosseinzadeh for his inclusion. The forward, who plies his trade for Shabab Al-Ahli in the United Arab Emirates, was also omitted from the squad in March, with local media reporting he had been expelled from the national team over a perceived act of disloyalty to the government.
Leading the attack in his absence will be Taremi, 33, who currently plays for Olympiacos, alongside former Brighton and Hove Albion winger Jahanbakhsh. The pair are expected to carry Iran’s attacking threat throughout the tournament, which takes place across the United States, Canada and Mexico from 11 June to 19 July.
Iran have endured months of uncertainty surrounding travel and security arrangements for the finals. FIFA approved a request to relocate their training base from Arizona to the Mexican border city of Tijuana, where the squad will be stationed during the tournament.
Despite those off-field complications, Iran’s group-stage schedule remains fixed in the United States. They open their campaign against New Zealand on 15 June in Los Angeles, before facing Belgium on 21 June in the same city. Their final group match is against Egypt on 26 June in Seattle.
Iran squad:
Goalkeepers: Alireza Beiranvand, Seyed Hossein Hosseini, Payam Niazmand
Defenders: Danial Eiri, Ehsan Hajsafi, Saleh Hardani, Hossein Kanaani, Shoja Khalilzadeh, Milad Mohammadi, Ali Nemati, Ramin Rezaeian
Midfielders: Rouzbeh Cheshmi, Saeid Ezatolahi, Mehdi Ghaedi, Saman Ghoddos, Mohammad Ghorbani, Alireza Jahanbakhsh, Mohammad Mohebi, Amir Mohammad Razzaghinia, Mehdi Torabi, Aria Yousefi
Forwards: Ali Alipour, Dennis Dargahi, Amirhossein Hosseinzadeh, Mehdi Taremi, Shahriar Moghanlou
