Italy’s repechage to the World Cup, a potential rival no longer (almost) hopes for it
Not only in Asia, Europe and South America are cherishing the dream of taking the place of Iran, which may not take part in the World Cup to be played in Canada, Mexico and the United States. In Africa, Nigeria is hoping for it, as pointed out by the legit.ng website, which, however, is also quite realistic. “The Super Eagles, who were hoping for a repechage after losing the final of the African playoffs to DR Congo, now see their chances of participating in the tournament further reduced,” it reads there. “The United Arab Emirates is in pole position to replace Iran if the crisis in the Middle East forces it to withdraw.”
“No team has withdrawn from the final stage of the World Cup after the draw since 1950, which would make this a potentially historic situation,” the Nigerian portal writes further. The issue revolves around Tehran’s adamant position that it does not want to play on U.S. soil. Iran has made a new request to FIFA, demanding strict security measures in the United States to protect its national team and the entire delegation throughout their U.S. stay. According to Iranian news agency Wana, the team’s participation in the tournament will depend on the guarantees Donald Trump will be able to provide for its athletes, both inside the stadiums and outside. A decision that the government in Tehran will have to make by early May to avoid a hefty fine from FIFA, which had already rejected Iran’s previous request to move the group matches (scheduled in Los Angeles on June 15 and 21 and in Seattle on June 26) to Mexican territory.
Surprisingly, however, a soothing statement came from the very technical commissioner of “Team Melli,” Amir Ghalenoei. “There is no reason not to participate in the World Cup. God willing, we will do it,” the 63-year-old former midfielder told German news agency Dpa. On the same wavelength was FIFA President Gianni Infantino, who speaking at the Invest forum organized by CNBC said Iran will “definitely” take part in the World Cup. “I went to visit them. They are also a pretty strong team. And they really want to play, and it’s right for them to play. Sports should stay out of politics,” the FIFA number one said, adding that “we hope that by then the situation will be peaceful.”
On the front of possible repechage, however, the situation is becoming more and more complex. According to reports from the French portal nicematin, the most popular hypothesis within FIFA would be that of a last-minute intercontinental mini-tournament among four non-qualifying national teams: two European and two Asian. Italy, currently 13th in the FIFA rankings and thus the team with the highest position among those outside the World Cup, would be the top candidate for the UEFA quota, flanked by Denmark, 20th in the rankings. For the AFC quota, on the other hand, the most credited names are those of the United Arab Emirates and Oman. Not everyone agrees on this format, however: RAI commentator Alberto Rimedio pointed out that the first alternative to Iran might not be European, pointing to the United Arab Emirates, first of the unqualified Asians after losing the play-off to Iraq, as the most natural candidate for a direct replacement.
Bolivia, however, has also made its voice heard, with the La Paz federation ready for an official challenge at FIFA should it be excluded from a possible repechage mini-tournament.
