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    <title>Aaj TV English News - Sports</title>
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    <language>en-Us</language>
    <copyright>Copyright 2026</copyright>
    <pubDate>Wed, 22 Apr 2026 08:07:59 +0500</pubDate>
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      <title>Iran cannot participate in World Cup, sports minister says</title>
      <link>https://english.aaj.tv/news/330454358/iran-cannot-participate-in-world-cup-sports-minister-says</link>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Iran cannot participate in the 2026 World Cup after co-host the United States launched airstrikes against the country alongside Israel, killing its leader, Ayatollah ‌Ali Khamenei, sports minister Ahmad Donyamali said on Wednesday.&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The United States and Israel launched airstrikes on Iran nearly two weeks ago, killing ​the Islamic Republic’s supreme leader, leading to a ​region-wide conflict in the Gulf.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;“Considering that this corrupt regime ⁠has assassinated our leader, under no circumstances can we ​participate in the World Cup,” the minister told state television.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The World Cup will be held in the United States, Mexico and Canada from June 11 to July 19.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;“Our children are not safe and, ​fundamentally, such conditions for participation do not exist,” Donyamali ​said.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;“Given the malicious actions they have carried out against Iran, they ‌have ⁠forced two wars on us over eight or nine months and have killed and martyred thousands of our people. Therefore, we certainly cannot have such a presence.”&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;In the draw ​last December, ​the Iranians ⁠were grouped with Belgium, Egypt and New Zealand. All three of their Group G matches ​were scheduled to take place in the ​U.S., ⁠two in Los Angeles and one in Seattle.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Iran was the only nation missing from a FIFA planning summit for World ⁠Cup ​participants held last week in Atlanta.&lt;/p&gt;
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      <content:encoded xmlns="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"><![CDATA[<p><strong>Iran cannot participate in the 2026 World Cup after co-host the United States launched airstrikes against the country alongside Israel, killing its leader, Ayatollah ‌Ali Khamenei, sports minister Ahmad Donyamali said on Wednesday.</strong></p>
<p>The United States and Israel launched airstrikes on Iran nearly two weeks ago, killing ​the Islamic Republic’s supreme leader, leading to a ​region-wide conflict in the Gulf.</p>
<p>“Considering that this corrupt regime ⁠has assassinated our leader, under no circumstances can we ​participate in the World Cup,” the minister told state television.</p>
<p>The World Cup will be held in the United States, Mexico and Canada from June 11 to July 19.</p>
<p>“Our children are not safe and, ​fundamentally, such conditions for participation do not exist,” Donyamali ​said.</p>
<p>“Given the malicious actions they have carried out against Iran, they ‌have ⁠forced two wars on us over eight or nine months and have killed and martyred thousands of our people. Therefore, we certainly cannot have such a presence.”</p>
<p>In the draw ​last December, ​the Iranians ⁠were grouped with Belgium, Egypt and New Zealand. All three of their Group G matches ​were scheduled to take place in the ​U.S., ⁠two in Los Angeles and one in Seattle.</p>
<p>Iran was the only nation missing from a FIFA planning summit for World ⁠Cup ​participants held last week in Atlanta.</p>
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      <category>Sports</category>
      <guid>https://english.aaj.tv/news/330454358</guid>
      <pubDate>Wed, 11 Mar 2026 19:48:04 +0500</pubDate>
      <author>none@none.com (Reuters)</author>
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        <media:title>Iran players in a team group photo before the match. Reuters file
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