Repeated Cancellation of Iran National Football Team's Friendly Matches

The preparatory matches for the Iran national football team are either being canceled or are not technically comparable to those of other opponents and their friendly matches, with issues facing the Iranian national team not seen in any of the teams present at the World Cup. The Iranian Football Federation faced a protest from the legal federation of Sierra Leone after the match with the Sierra Leone national team, and even FIFA got involved. Iran is now facing problems with the Greek Football Federation, and the match with Kosovo has also been canceled due to ongoing issues. The Iranian players are currently training in Istanbul at the Beşiktaş training center. After losing to Turkey, Iran was supposed to play against Greece, but this match was canceled due to disputes between the two federations. The Greek federation announced that it was not willing to play in Istanbul. Subsequently, both sides agreed to hold the match in Greece, which was supposed to take place in Santorini, a location less than an hour's flight from Istanbul. Even coach Carlos Queiroz visited the playing field. However, Iran refused to hold the match in Greece due to issues with broadcasting rights and the support of a brewery company for the Greek Football Federation. The Iranian Football Federation stated: 'We express our deep regret over the lack of respect and ethics in the Greek federation. We will take legal action to compensate for the damages incurred.' The Iranian Football Federation emphasized that it would suspend its relations with the Greek Football Federation. However, there was no relationship between the federations of the two countries that could be suspended due to this incident. The Iranian federation also did not specify what exactly its demands regarding the brewery company were. The question arises whether federations have the right to cancel an agreement to hold a match due to the financial supporter of the opposing team. Additionally, why did Iran not investigate such details before the agreement? Even if FIFA condemns Greece, the Iranian national team has lost the opportunity for an important preparatory match, a loss that cannot be compensated. However, in the continuation of the saga, Iran reached an agreement with the Kosovo Football Federation to play against this country in Istanbul. In this regard, widespread criticism has been published in Iranian media and social networks, with fans upset that Iran has to play against the 158th-ranked FIFA team, deeming this match unsuitable for World Cup preparation. Kosovo is a team that finished the European World Cup qualifiers without a win. However, alongside the criticisms, Kosovo announced that it was not willing to play against Iran. According to the Kosovo federation's website, the team refused to accept Iran's condition to play the match without spectators. The Iranian federation stated about the cancellation of this match: 'A new and last-minute demand from Kosovo made holding this match completely impossible.' The published text did not mention the details of Kosovo's 'last-minute demand,' and it is unclear whether Iran meant Kosovo's opposition to playing behind closed doors or if there was another issue at hand. Thus, the Iranian national team has only one more preparatory match before the World Cup, which will be against Lithuania. A long break from matches and competition conditions, as well as the lack of tactical reviews in a serious match process, are among the damages caused by the cancellation of the national team's friendly matches. In such matches, the experience and self-confidence of inexperienced players increase. However, Iran has effectively missed opportunities and will face the European champion and World Cup champion with weak preparations. Iran's last friendly match will take place on June 8 against Lithuania, and this match will be held in Russia.