Iranian soccer delegates denied entry to Canada for Vancouver FIFA congress

A delegation of iranian language football game officials feature been denied accounting entry to Canada forward of this week's FIFA conference, but Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand has suggested the refusal might have been unintentional.

Anand's comments come after Iranian media reported that Iranian Football Federation president Mehdi Taj and his delegation were turned away after landing at Toronto's Pearson Airport on Tuesday night.

The incident risks creating new friction between Iran and Canada exactly six weeks before the start of the World Cup as global tensions remain high over the fragile ceasefire between United States and Iran.

Taj is a former commander in Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which Canada has listed as a terrorist entity since 2024. The entire delegation has now returned home, calling the incident an insult.

Iran International, the agency that first broke the story, reported sources within the Canadian government as saying Taj had been issued a Temporary Resident Permit (TRP), which would have allowed him to to enter Canada for the conference in Vancouver.

When asked about the denial of entry on Wednesday, Anand said the matter was under Immigration Minister Lena Diab's portfolio.

"It's not my personal lead, but my understanding is that there is a revocation of the permission. It was unintentional, but I'll leave it to the minister to indicate," Anand said.

The Iranian delegation was enroute to the 76th FIFA congress in Vancouver. The event brings together 211 national soccer federation members of FIFA, the world governing body for the sport. The event is seen as a warm-up to the 2026 men’s World Cup that is being co-hosted by Canada, the United States and Mexico starting in June. 

Conservative immigration critic Michelle Rempel Garner, citing the reporting in Iran, asked why Taj was issued a TRP.

"How did the guy get on a plane? He's an Iranian regime official, like, clearly documented. I think a simple Google search would have told them that," Rempel Garner said after question period.

"So it's either gross incompetence or something worse. And the government's going to have to answer for that because there's a lot of members of the diaspora who are persecuted by regime officials."

An emailed response from Diab's office said all visa applications are reviewed on a case-by-case basis by trained officials.

"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," said Taous Ait, Diab's press secretary.

"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 denial of entry explains Iran’s no-show at the meeting of the Asian Football Confederation, of which Iran is a member, held on Tuesday in Vancouver in advance of Thursday’s congress.

Iran is one of 48 nations that have qualified for the World Cup. The team is slated to play two games in Inglewood, Calif., and one in Seattle during the tournament's group stage, even though Iran and the U.S. Are at war. 

FIFA president Gianni Infantino said last month that Iran would be “for sure” travelling to the U.S., and last week an Iranian government spokesperson said the men’s national team was preparing for its World Cup games in the U.S. 

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