VANCOUVER/TORONTO, April 29 (Reuters) - An Iranian football federation delegation, including a former member of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, said they turned back at Toronto’s main airport this week, citing their treatment by Canadian immigration, and are set to miss a pre-World Cup FIFA gathering in Vancouver.

Iran’s semi-official Tasnim News Agency reported that the delegation members, including federation president Mehdi Taj, secretary general Hedayat Mombeni and his deputy Hamed Momeni, turned back upon arrival despite holding valid visas, citing what was described as the “unacceptable behaviour of immigration officials.”

The Iranian delegation was en route to Vancouver for Thursday’s FIFA Congress, which is meant to bring together representatives of all 211 member associations ahead of the 2026 World Cup being co-hosted by Canada, the United States and Mexico.

“While Mehdi Taj, president, Hedayat Mombeni, secretary general, and Hamed Momeni, deputy secretary general of the federation, had travelled to Toronto with official visas to attend the FIFA Congress, they returned to Turkey on the first available flight due to the unacceptable behaviour of immigration officials at the airport and the insult to one of the most honourable organs of the Iranian nation’s armed forces,” the Iran football federation said in a statement carried by Tasnim News Agency.

Taj is a former member of Iran’s hardline Revolutionary Guard (IRGC). “While we cannot comment on individual cases due to privacy laws, the government has been clear and consistent: IRGC officials are inadmissible to Canada and have no place in our country,” the Canadian government said in a statement.

“We have taken strong action to hold the IRGC to account and will continue to do so, while protecting the safety of Canadians and upholding the integrity of our immigration system.”

The incident that occurred on Tuesday underscores the practical and political obstacles surrounding Iran’s participation at the World Cup, the most politically sensitive item on FIFA’s agenda since the U.S. and Israel launched a war against Iran in February.

Iran’s qualification has not removed hurdles tied to travel, visas and security in a tournament staged in three countries.

CANADIAN MINISTER SAYS IRGC MEMBERS NOT WELCOME

Canada’s Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree said he could not speak about specific cases due to privacy legislation but Revolutionary Guard members were not welcome in Canada.

In 2024, Canada listed the IRGC as a terrorist organisation.

“The Canadian government had granted Taj special permission to enter Canada for a FIFA event. He would otherwise have been inadmissible due to his affiliation with the IRGC, which Canada formally recognized as a terrorist entity in June 2024,” the Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights said in a statement.

“This case should have been straightforward. The decision to grant him entry at all was profoundly troubling. It undermines Canada’s designation of the IRGC as a terrorist entity and contradicts our country’s commitment to combatting impunity for serious human rights abuses in Iran.” U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said last week Washington had no objections to Iranian players participating in the World Cup but added that the players would not be allowed to bring with them people with ties to the IRGC.

While FIFA has insisted fixtures will proceed as scheduled, the delegation’s withdrawal deepens doubts over whether Iranian players, officials and supporters will be able to move freely across borders during the tournament.

FIFA has since contacted the Iranian delegation to express regret over the incident and indicated that President Gianni Infantino would arrange a meeting with them at the organisation’s headquarters, the Tasnim report added.

FIFA did not respond to a request for comment from Reuters. A source at the FIFA Congress told Reuters FIFA had sent a representative to mediate in Toronto but their efforts were in vain.

WORLD CUP LESS THAN TWO MONTHS AWAY

The FIFA Congress is usually a routine gathering but carries greater weight this year with the World Cup less than two months away and several questions, including cost and Iran’s participation, still hanging over the first 48-team edition of the tournament.

The Iranian officials were also unable to attend Tuesday’s Asian Football Confederation Congress, which was also held in Vancouver.

“If it’s like this in Canada where it’s supposed to be easy, how is it going to be for the World Cup in the U.S.?” a delegate at the AFC Congress told Reuters on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter.

Palestinian Football Association President Jibril Rajoub told Reuters in Vancouver that the issue of visas had clouded the FIFA Congress.

“No one knows whether they will issue visas for this or that,” he said. “Building a wall between politics and this world (of sport) is a benefit for everybody, including the three countries who are hosting the World Cup. Let us at least present something united to the world.”

Concerns over security, travel restrictions and the broader geopolitical climate have prompted officials in Tehran to seek guarantees for the Iran team at the World Cup and, in some cases, explore the possibility of alternative venues for their matches in the United States.

FIFA has so far resisted any changes, reiterating that participating teams are expected to adhere to the established match schedule.

The Congress was expected to focus on operational and financial questions linked to the World Cup.

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