A US special envoy to President Donald Trump has formally proposed to FIFA that Italy replace Iran at the upcoming World Cup, the Financial Times reported on April 23, linking the request to an effort to repair Trump’s strained ties with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
“I confirm I have suggested to Trump and [FIFA president Gianni] Infantino that Italy replace Iran at the World Cup,” Special Envoy Paolo Zampolli told the FT. “I’m an Italian native, and it would be a dream to see the Azzurri at a US-hosted tournament. With four titles, they have the pedigree to justify inclusion.”
The proposal emerged against the backdrop of the Trump administration’s dispute with the Vatican and Italy over Trump’s public attacks on Pope Leo XIV during the Iran war. Meloni is said to have been personally angered by those remarks.
Italy failed to qualify for the 2026 World Cup after a 4-1 penalty shootout loss to Bosnia and Herzegovina in their qualifying playoff final in March — the country’s third successive absence from the tournament despite being four-time world champions.
The White House, FIFA, the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) and Iran’s football federation (FFIRI) did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment. Iran issued a statement on Wednesday saying it is prepared for the tournament and plans to participate. Earlier in April, Iran had said it would decide on participation only after receiving a FIFA response on the relocation of its matches from US venues to Mexico.
Any replacement of a qualified national team by political request would be unprecedented in the modern World Cup era and runs directly contrary to FIFA’s statutes on political interference. The episode underscores how thoroughly the Iran war is now entangled with cultural and sporting diplomacy.
Source: Newswire
