Italy’s repechage to the World Cup: the'Iran moves on to mocks

Iran reacts again to news of Donald Trump’s pressing for a possible World Cup replacement of Iran with Italy. In a tongue-in-cheek post on X, the Iranian embassy in Ghana put the U.S. president in the crosshairs, addressing the Italians sarcastically.

“Dear Italy, that man, allergic to civilization, has become jealous and offered you something about a sport he neither likes nor understands. We know you love soccer too much to even consider such an offer.”

“Pineapple on pizza you could take it. This, never. Anyway, let’s leave him to his confusion and get back to the arguments that only true civilizations understand,” the embassy wryly suggested. “You choose the topic: pizza, pasta, meatballs, heaven. Warning: we have proof!”

This is not the first time Iranian diplomacy has been vocal on the issue. Already in recent days, the Iranian embassy in Italy had responded firmly to American pressure through a post on X: “Football belongs to peoples, not politicians. The attempt to exclude Iran from the World Cup only shows the ‘moral bankruptcy’ of the United States, which fears even the presence of eleven young Iranians on the field of play.”

Iranian Sports Minister Ahmad Donyamali reiterated that “if the safety of the national team players in the United States is guaranteed, we will leave for the World Cup,” pointing out that the final decision will be up to the government authorities together with the Supreme National Security Council. Iran will face New Zealand and Belgium in Los Angeles on June 16 and June 21 respectively, closing the round with Egypt in Seattle on June 26.