FIFA President Gianni Infantino opened his address at FIFA Congress by affirming that Iran will participate in the World Cup and that the team will play in the United States despite the conflict between the two nations.

“And the reason for that is very simple, dear friends, is because we have to unite. We have to bring people together. It is my responsibility. It is our responsibility,” Infantino said. “Football unites the world. FIFA unites the world. You unite the world. We unite the world.”

In an indication of how fraught the situation is with Iran’s participation in the World Cup, representatives from the Iranian soccer federation were denied entry into Canada this week.

Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said it was her “understanding” that the Iranian officials were turned away, following a report by Tasnim, an Iranian news agency associated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The report said Iranian soccer federation president Mehdi Taj and two other officials were denied entry at Toronto’s airport.

Earlier in the week at the Asian soccer federation’s congress in Vancouver, Iran’s participation in the World Cup or whether the team’s matches should be moved out of the United States was not addressed.

At the roll call for the FIFA Congress where all nations were named, Iran was announced as absent. Outside the event at the Vancouver Convention Center there was a small group of protestors holding Iranian flags.

Infantino has not wavered on Iran’s participation in the World Cup or in its matches in the United States. At one point, Iran asked to move its games to Mexico, but that request was rejected. The World Cup starts on June 11 and the final is scheduled for July 19 with games in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Canada emphasises its diversity

In contrast to concerns about an immigration crackdown in the United States ahead of the World Cup, Canadian officials speaking at the FIFA Congress stressed the nation’s diversity.

“Canada has always been more than just a country on a map. It is a meeting place of cultures, languages, ideas and dreams. People from every corner of the world have come here with their stories, their traditions, their talents and their hopes together. These stories don’t disappear. They become part of who we are,” said Peter Augruso, the president of the Canadian Soccer Association.

Concerns about ticket prices

In his address to the congress, Infantino briefly addressed complaints about the costs of tickets to World Cup matches, but his comments were directed at the heads of the member associations and not fans.

“We sold 100 per cent of the inventory that we put on the market, which is more or less 90 per cent of the global inventory so far. And of course, we are always putting tickets on the market,” Infantino said.

“There are expensive tickets, yes, and there are also affordable tickets. And what is important is that all the revenues that we generate from the world go back to you, go back to the entire world and finance football in all of your countries,” he said.

Also read: Replacing Iran not a good idea, says Italy