Iran men's national football team

History

Early years

The Iranian Football Federation was founded in 1920. In 1926, Tehran XI (selected players from Tehran Club, Toofan, and Armenian Sports Club) traveled across the border to Baku, Soviet Union; this was the first away football match for an Iranian team. This Tehran Select team is the predecessor of Iran's national football team.

The first match that Team Melli played was on 23 August 1941, away at Kabul in a 1–0 win against British India while Iran's first FIFA international match was on 25 August 1941, away at Afghanistan.

Iran won three AFC Asian Cups in 1968, 1972, and 1976, the latter being their most recent Asian Cup win. In 1978, Iran made its first appearance in the FIFA World Cup after defeating Australia in Tehran. They lost two of three group stage matches against the Netherlands and Peru, and only earned one point by drawing Scotland, in a match that saw Iraj Danaeifard cancel out an own goal scored by Andranik Eskandarian for a score of 1–1.

After the Iranian Revolution

After the Iranian Revolution, football was somewhat neglected. During the 1980s, the Iranian national team did not feature in World Cup competitions due to the Iran–Iraq War (1980–88) and domestic football embraced the inevitable effects of conflict. The national team withdrew from the Asian qualifiers for the 1982 FIFA World Cup and refused to participate in the qualifiers for the 1986 FIFA World Cup because of having to play on neutral ground. The war and political upheavals left Iran without major club competitions until 1989 when the Qods League was established. A year later, the Qods League was renamed the Azadegan League. Despite failing to qualify for both the 1990 and 1994 World Cups, it was said that during this period, a number of quality players burst onto the Iranian football scene laying the foundation for third place in the 1996 AFC Asian Cup (victories in that tournament included a 3–0 victory against Saudi Arabia and a 6–2 victory against South Korea) and their second stab at World Cup glory in 1998.

1998–2006

On 29 November 1997, Iran qualified for the 1998 FIFA World Cup after eliminating Australia in a close playoff series. After being tied 3–3 on aggregate, Iran advanced due to the away goals rule; Iran held Australia to a 1–1 draw at home, and a 2–2 draw in Melbourne.

At their first game at the 1998 FIFA World Cup against Yugoslavia, Iran lost 1–0 to a free kick by Siniša Mihajlović. Iran recorded their first World Cup victory in the second game beating and eliminating the United States 2–1 with Hamid Estili and Mehdi Mahdavikia scoring goals for Iran. The Iran-US World Cup match was preheated with certain excitement because of each country's political stance after the Iranian revolution and the Iran hostage crisis. However, in an act of defiance against all forms of hatred or politics in sports, both sides presented one another with gifts and flowers and took ceremonial pictures before the match kickoff. Iran played against Germany in the third game, losing 2–0 courtesy of goals from Oliver Bierhoff and Jürgen Klinsmann, finishing third in the group with 3 points.

Iran finished first in the group stage of the 2000 AFC Asian Cup but lost to South Korea in the quarter-finals. They failed to qualify for 2002 FIFA World Cup, held in Asia for the first time, after an aggregate defeat to the Republic of Ireland, losing 2–0 in Dublin and winning 1–0 in Tehran. The elimination saw manager Miroslav Blažević step down from the top spot to be replaced by his assistant Branko Ivanković who stepped up from assistant coach.

After qualifying to the 2004 AFC Asian Cup, Iran was drawn with Thailand, Oman and Japan in the tournament. Iran finished second in the group. In the quarter-final clash against South Korea, Iran won 4–3. They then lost to host China on penalty kicks, and won against Bahrain 4–2 to finish third place in the tournament.

On 8 June 2005, Iran and Japan became the first countries other than hosts Germany to qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. The match between the two countries in Tehran, played on 24 March 2005, was the highest attended qualifying match among all confederations. The match ended with five fans dead and several others injured as they left the Azadi Stadium at the end of the match.

Iran started their 2006 FIFA World Cup appearance in Germany with a match against North America's Mexico in Group D. Being 1–1 at half-time, defensive mistakes led to a Mexican 3–1 win, with goals from Omar Bravo and Sinha. Yahya Golmohammadi scored the only Iranian goal. Team Melli played against Portugal in the second game, losing 2–0. The goals were scored by Deco and a penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo. Iran were eliminated from the competition before their third and final game against Angola, a 1–1 draw.

Temporary suspension

In November 2006, Iran was suspended by FIFA from all participation in international football on the grounds of governmental interference in the national football association. The ban lasted less than a month and as a dispensation was given to allow the Iran under-23 team to participate in the football competition of the 2006 Asian Games, fixtures were unaffected.

2007–2014

The IRIFF appointed Amir Ghalenoei as manager of Iran on 17 July 2006 to succeed Branko Ivanković. After finishing first in the 2007 AFC Asian Cup qualifying round two points ahead of South Korea, Iran placed first in the group stage of the final tournament in Malaysia, eventually losing to their qualifying opponents in a penalty shoot-out in the quarterfinals. His contract was not renewed and Team Melli was left with a caretaker manager for several months.

Then-leading international goalscorer Ali Daei was chosen to become the new manager after Spanish coach Javier Clemente had been closer to signing on as Iran's national team manager, when talks collapsed when he refused to live full-time in the country. Iran was placed with Kuwait, Syria and United Arab Emirates in the third round of 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying. Ali Daei resigned from his position as the Iranian national coach on 29 March 2009, replaced by Afshin Ghotbi. Iran failed to qualify for the 2010 World Cup after finishing fourth overall in its group.

During the final game of the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against South Korea in Seoul on 17 June 2009, seven members of the team wore green wristbands in support of the Iranian Green Movement during the 2009 Iranian election protests. Initial rumors and false reports were that all seven players were banned for life by the Iranian Football Federation, however, state-run media claimed that all seven had "retired". On 24 June 2009, FIFA wrote to Iran's Football Federation asking for clarification on the situation. The Iranian Football Federation replied that no disciplinary action has been taken against any player.

Afshin Ghotbi renewed his contract until the end of 2011 AFC Asian Cup and the team qualified for the tournament with 13 points as group winners. During the final qualification match against South Korea, several Iranian players started the match wearing green armbands or wristbands, a symbol of protest at the outcome of the Iranian presidential election. Most removed them at half-time. The newspaper Iran reported that Ali Karimi, Mehdi Mahdavikia, Hosein Kaebi and Vahid Hashemian had received life bans from the Iranian FA for the gesture. However, the Iranian FA denied this claim in a response to FIFA's inquiry saying that "the comments in foreign media are nothing but lies and a mischievous act." Head coach Afshin Ghotbi also confirmed that it was a rumour and the Iranian FA "has not taken any official stand on this issue."

Late 2010s

Iran qualified for the 2015 AFC Asian Cup as group winners where Team Melli were the highest ranked seed. Iran faced Bahrain, Qatar and the UAE in Group C. With the second highest number of fans in the tournament after hosts Australia, the Iranians defeated Bahrain 2–0 with limited preparations. A defensive-minded Iran then defeated Qatar 1–0 thanks to a Sardar Azmoun goal before defeating UAE by the same scoreline to reach the top of their group. In the quarter-finals Iran faced Iraq who they had beaten weeks prior in a friendly match. Having received a controversial red card in the first half, Iran competed with ten men, managing to score goals late in extra time to draw the match 3–3. In the ensuing penalty shootout, Iran lost 7–6.

Iran began their 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign with friendly matches against Chile and Sweden in March 2015. Queiroz resigned from his managerial post thereafter due to disagreements with the Iranian Football Federation. On 14 April 2015, Iran were drawn with Oman, India, Turkmenistan and Guam in the second round of qualifiers. On 26 April, Queiroz announced that he would continue as the manager of Iran for their 2018 World Cup campaign. Iran became the second team to qualify for the 2018 World Cup after a 2–0 win at home over Uzbekistan on 12 June 2017. They also clinched first place in their qualification group after South Korea's defeat to Qatar.

Iran won the first match against Morocco after Aziz Bouhaddouz scoring an own goal. They then lost against Spain with a goal scored by Diego Costa, with video assistant referees denying an Iranian equalizer. The third match against Portugal ended in a draw after a penalty scored by Karim Ansarifard in the stoppage time, while Cristiano Ronaldo missed a penalty when Iran was trailing, with Alireza Beiranvand making a decisive save and because Morocco could only manage a 2–2 draw to Spain, Iran were eliminated. Iran's four points is the most received in any World Cup appearance.

Having qualified for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup earlier, Iran was drawn into group D, where they shared fate with Iraq, Vietnam and Yemen. Iran opened their tournament against Yemen, nearly conceding a goal early but after 10 minutes, Iran regained the ground and proved more dominant in certain aspects, thrashing Yemen 5–0. A 2–0 win over the Vietnamese side gave Iran direct qualification to the knockout stage. Iran ended their group stage with a goalless draw over neighbor Iraq and took first place. After the group stage, Iran encountered Oman, with a defending mistake almost costing Iran's chances but Ahmed Mubarak Al-Mahaijri's penalty was saved by Alireza Beiranvand. Iran then defeated Oman 2–0 to reach the last eight. In the quarter-finals against a defensive China, Iran outclassed the Chinese 3–0 to meet Japan in the semi-finals. Iran missed the opportunity to reach the final once again when they fell 3–0 with all three goals scored in second half.

Early 2020s

Iran was the highest-ranked team to be seeded in the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification, being drawn into the second round where they would deal with two Arab countries, Iraq and Bahrain, along with Cambodia and Hong Kong. Iran, under new Belgian manager Marc Wilmots, began with a 2–0 away win over Hong Kong. After the death of Sahar Khodayari, the 14–0 win over Cambodia allowed select Iranian women to enter the stadium for the first time since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Their next away encounters against Bahrain and Iraq went on to be consecutive defeats which Iran lost 0–1 and 1–2, respectively. Following two consecutive draws between Iraq and Bahrain, Iran was left with the possibility of being eliminated from the World Cup outright in the second round, leading to the sacking of Marc Wilmots.

The COVID-19 pandemic in Iran forced the remaining fixtures to be played without spectators in June 2021, forcing Iran to play their remaining games in Bahrain under new coach Dragan Skočić; but with Bahrain losing its home support as an advantage, and Iraq assured a place in the final phase, Iran was able to stage a comeback, occupying first place and, together with Iraq, progressed to the final phase.

Iran became the thirteenth team to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup after a 1–0 win at home over Iraq on 27 January 2022. In March 2022, Iranian women were again banned from entering the stadium for a World Cup qualifier. Iran's World Cup preparation friendly match against Canada at BC Place in June 2022 was cancelled by the Canadian Soccer Association amid opposition and mounting criticism, namely in regards to the Iranian government's role in shooting down Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752.

By the start of the World Cup in Qatar, Iran was the highest ranked team from Asia. In October 2022, calls were made to ban the Iranian national team from the World Cup for the Iranian government's blocking of Iranian women from their stadiums, their supplying of weapons to Russia during the invasion of Ukraine, and the treatment towards protesters during the Mahsa Amini protests. However, Iran started its World Cup campaign with a nightmare, losing 2–6 to England in the opening game as Iran suffered the worst ever loss in its FIFA World Cup history. The Iranian team notably made headlines in their opening match against England after refusing to sing the national anthem in solidarity with the Mahsa Amini protests, with some Iranian supporters cheering against their own team or boycotting their team amidst the ongoing protests as they felt the team was representing the government.

Late 2020s

Iran qualified for the 2026 FIFA World Cup on 25 March 2025 following a 2–2 home draw against Uzbekistan in the third round of AFC qualification.

They were placed in pot 2 for the World Cup draw and were subsequently drawn into Group G alongside Belgium, Egypt, and New Zealand.

Prior to the draw, a group stage match scheduled to be played in Seattle was designated as a "Pride Match" by the City of Seattle to coincide with the city's annual Pride celebrations and to promote LGBT inclusion. Following the draw, the fixture was confirmed to be the match between Iran and Egypt. Both Iran and Egypt are countries where homosexuality is criminalized under domestic law, with Iran in particular having imposed capital punishment in certain cases. The Iranian Football Federation and the Egyptian Football Association objected to the match's designation; however, FIFA and local organizers confirmed that associated LGBT events would proceed, and that rainbow flags would be permitted inside the stadium.

In January 2026, multiple Iranian footballers and athletes were killed by the Iranian regime during the 2026 Iran massacres amid the 2025–2026 Iranian protests, including former Tractor Sazi F.C. midfielder Mojtaba Tarshiz, prompting former Iran national team captain Masoud Shojaei to criticise FIFA for its silence over the killing of Iranian athletes during protests, while then-captain Mehdi Taremi expressed solidarity with the Iranian people.

Following the massacres, activists called on FIFA to ban the Iranian national team from the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Ali Karimi, a former footballer for the Iran national team, along with a coalition of prominent Iranians, wrote an open letter to FIFA and all its member associations, calling on FIFA president Gianni Infantino to speak up on the protest deaths. Following the protests and ensuing crackdown, the Spanish Football Federation reportedly pulled out of a planned friendly match with Iran.

Amid the Iran war, Sardar Azmoun was reportedly expelled from the national team after posting a picture of himself with the ruler of the UAE on social media. On 30 April 2026, protests were held outside the 2026 FIFA Congress in Vancouver, calling on FIFA to ban the Iranian team and stating that it represents and recruits players from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) instead of the people of Iran.

2026 World Cup

Despite the visa dispute and training in Mexico, the Iranian national team flew to the US for its first two games in the tournament. In the first game Iran came twice from behind to draw 2-2 against New Zealand, with R. Rezaeian M. Mohebi scoring for Iran. Mohammad Mohebi's goal celebration sparked controversy after he appeared to mimic a finger-gun gesture while celebrating. The match was already politically charged, with pre-revolutionary Iranian flags visible in the crowd despite FIFA's restrictions. The incident added another layer of debate, as social media users widely discussed the meaning and appropriateness of the celebration. Mohebi later denied any political intent, stating that it was simply a celebratory gesture and nothing more. In its second game Iran drew 0-0 against Belgium. It was reported that the team left a handwritten note in the dressing room of SoFi Stadium after the game calling for peace: "may peace, respect and friendship prevail among all nations". They left a similar message in the dressing room of Lumen Field after their third and final game of the tournament against Egypt which ended 1-1. Despite not qualifying for the knockout round, this was the first time Iran finished an iteration of the World Cup without a loss and became the only undefeated team to not advance to the knockout stage.

Team image

Nicknames

The Iranian national team has received several nicknames by supporters and media. The most common one used is Team Melli (meaning "National Team" in Persian). Although the Iranian supporters have popularized Team Melli, other nicknames for the team include Shiran e Iran, ("Lions of Iran"), and "Princes of Persia" (used since AFC Asian Cup 2011). Iran's slogan for the 2014 FIFA World Cup was Honour of Persia, selected in an internet poll held by FIFA. A more recently used nickname, due to the presence of the Asiatic cheetah on the 2014 World Cup jersey, is Yuzpalangan which means "The Cheetahs"; the team mascot "Yupa" is also a cheetah, although this has been seen as a government propaganda ploy to wane people away from the lion nickname due to the pre-revolutionary Lion and Sun.

Kits and crests

Traditionally, Iran national football team's home kit is white, and the away kit is red. Sometimes, green shirts with white shorts and red socks are used.

The table below shows the history of kit suppliers for the Iranian national football team.

Sponsorship

On 1 February 2014, Iran announced the addition of the endangered Asiatic cheetah on their 2014 FIFA World Cup kits to bring attention to its conservation efforts.

Rivalries

Iran and Iraq are neighboring rivals. According to the Malay Mail, "Emotions are always high when Iran and Iraq meet on the football pitch". In the contemporary era, especially during the reign of Saddam Hussein, the two countries had worsened relations and fought the Iran–Iraq War for 8 years. In 2001, for the first time in decades, an Iran-Iraq match was not held at a neutral venue. The rivalry was escalated after Iraq knocked Iran out of the 2015 AFC Asian Cup in controversial circumstances. Iran leads the series with 18 wins, 7 draws and 6 losses.

Iran and Saudi Arabia are ideological rivals. The game was ranked eighth in Goal.com's 2010 list of "Football's 10 Greatest International Rivalries". and ninth in Bleacher Report's 2014 list of "International Football's 10 Most Politically-Charged Football Rivalries" All of their matches have been competitive; none of them were friendlies. The first match was played on 24 August 1975, with Iran defeating Saudi Arabia 3–0. Iran leads the series with 5 wins, 6 draws and 4 losses.

Stadiums

Since 1972, Iran's national stadium has been Tehran's Azadi Stadium with a nominal capacity of 78,116 spectators. Azadi Stadium is the 28th largest association football stadium in the world, seventh in Asia and first in West Asia. A record was set in Azadi for the 1998 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Australia with over 128,000 in attendance. Since 1979, the government restricts Iranian women from entering the stadiums. However, FIFA condemned the move and wrote to Iranian Football Federation in June 2019. The federation in their letter gave deadline to uplift the restrictions and let women enter the stadiums. On 25 August 2019, deputy Sports Minister Jamshid Taghizadeh stated: "Women can go to Tehran's Azadi stadium to watch the match between Iran's national team and Cambodia in October for the Qatar World Cup qualifier." After the death of Sahar Khodayari, select Iranian women were allowed to attend the match against Cambodia in October 2019. However, in March 2022, Iranian women were again blocked from entering the stadium for a FIFA World Cup qualifier.

From 1942 to 1972, Amjadieh Stadium was Iran's national stadium. Other stadiums that Iran has played international games at are Bagh Shomal and Yadegar Emam Stadium (Tabriz), Takhti Stadium (Tehran), Enghelab Stadium (Karaj), Hafezieh Stadium (Shiraz), Takhti Stadium and Imam Reza Stadium (Mashhad).

The Iran National Football Camp is the team's training ground.

Results and fixtures

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

Win

Draw

Loss

Fixture

Players

Current squad

The following players have been called up to participate in the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Caps and goals updated as of 26 June 2026, after the match against Egypt.

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called up to the team in the last 12 months.

Player records

As of 26 June 2026

Statistics include official FIFA-recognised matches only.

Players in bold are still active with Iran.

Top goalscorers

Notes

Competitive record

Head-to-head record

As of 26 June 2026

Source:

The list shown below shows the Iran national football team all-time international record against opposing nations.

FIFA considers Russia as the inheritor of the records of Soviet Union.

FIFA considers Serbia as the inheritor of the records of SFR Yugoslavia and FR Yugoslavia.

FIFA considers Czech Republic as the inheritor of the records of Czechoslovakia.

FIFA World rankings

9 , 9 , 2 , 5 (Fourth Place) (25/31) (1993–2023)

Between December 2014 and May 2018, Iran was the highest-ranked team in Asia, which is the longest continuous period of time that a team has held that distinction.

Highest FIFA ranking

15 (July 2005)

Lowest FIFA ranking

122 (May 1996)

Best mover

+65 (July 1996)

Worst mover

–43 (October 1995)

Last update was on 01 January 2022.

Best Ranking Worst Ranking Best Mover Worst Mover

Honours

Intercontinental

Afro-Asian Cup of Nations

Runners-up (1): 1991

AFC–OFC Challenge Cup

Champions (1): 2003

Continental

AFC Asian Cup

Champions (3): 1968, 1972, 1976

Third place (6): 1980, 1988, 1996, 2004, 2019, 2023

Asian Games1

Gold medal (3): 1974, 1990, 1998

Silver medal (2): 1951, 1966

Regional

WAFF Championship

Champions (4): 2000, 2004, 2007*, 2008

Runners-up (1): 2010

Third place (1): 2002

CAFA Nations Cup

Champions (1): 2023

Runners-up (1): 2025

West Asian Games

Gold medal (1): 1997

Runners-up (1): 2002

Third place (1): 2005

Friendly

ECO Cup

Winners: 1965, 1970, 1993

Runners-up: 1967, 1969, 1974**

LG Cup

Winners: 2001, 2002 (Morocco), 2002 (Iran)

Third place: 2000

Quaid-e-Azam International Tournament

Winners: 1982

Iran Friendship Cup

Runners-up: 1969

Cyrus International Tournament

Winners: 1971

Iran International Tournament

Winners: 1974

Fajr International Tournament

Runners-up: 1986

Lunar New Year Cup

Runners-up: 2003

Third place: 1998

Ciao February Cup

Runners-up: 1999

Canada Cup

Runners-up: 1999

Civilization Cup

Third place: 2001

Tehran Cup

Third place: 2005

Awards

AFC Asian Cup Fair Play Award: 1996

Summary

Only official honours are included, according to FIFA statutes (competitions organized/recognized by FIFA or an affiliated confederation).

Notes

Competition organized by OCA, officially not recognized by FIFA.