Italy’s repechage to the World Cup, Belgium loses patience

The days are passing, we are getting closer and closer to the start of the world championships in Canada, Mexico and the United States, yet one giant doubt still remains: will Iran be there or not? In case “Team Melli” drops out, a replacement will have to be found in a hurry, and, of course, with less than a month to go before the start of the rainbow review, the hypothesis of a tournament to blow it out of the water is losing steam.

Belgium, along with Egypt and New Zealand, is placed in the same group as Iran, and tension is growing in and around Brussels. “It is not possible not to know yet whether we will play with Iran, the UAE, Italy, Bolivia or Tanzania: each team is different from the others,” blurted blogger Le Populaire, who received a myriad of likes.

Despite the uncertainties, a large public ceremony was staged in Tehran to bid farewell to the national team. Thousands of fans gathered to support Mehdi Taremi and teammates, and the official uniform the team will wear during the competition was unveiled. “This is the best farewell in the last four World Cup appearances,” Mehdi Taj, president of the Iranian Football Federation, himself told state television.

President of the Islamic Republic Masoud Pezeshkian also met with the team, addressing a motivational speech to the players: “What really matters will be sincere commitment, a sense of responsibility and the use of all available energy to honor Iran.”

The regulations do not set specific limits on dates: however, the Iranian Football Association has passed the May 12 date by which the fine for non-participation would have been 250,000 Swiss francs. The penalty, from now on, will be 500 thousand francs, in case of a forfeit by the Islamic Republic’s representative.

With regard to substution, however, FIFA retains the final say: with the mini-tournament hypothesis seeming less and less viable as the World Cup is now around the corner, there remains the possibility on the part of the World Federation to decide unilaterally what to do and promote another national team in Iran’s place if the conditions for Iran’s participation fail.

Italy, best among the excluded in the ranking, remains at the window: time, however, is really starting to run out.