Iran heads home after a heartbreaking World Cup knockout, but fans say players should be proud

TIJUANA, Mexico (AP) — The Iranian national team left North America on Tuesday, departing from its World Cup home in Mexico following a tournament marked by repeated disagreements with U.S. officials, flashes of athletic brilliance and, ultimately, disappointment over barely missing out on advancing beyond the group stage.

The players return to a homeland still in the grips of an unresolved conflict with Israel and the United States. But their fans say they should be proud.

“I think even though they lost, it gave people a sense of hope,” said Mohammad Modarres, 38, who traveled from San Diego to bid the team farewell.

After its three group stage matches ended in draws, Iran's World Cup future depended on either Algeria or Austria winning their match on Saturday.

Watching from the lobby of their Tijuana hotel, the team erupted in celebration when Algeria took the lead in stoppage time.

“I've never seen a room explode like that,” said Kimia Ranjbar, 25, a lifelong fan of Team Melli who had driven down from the Los Angeles area. But minutes later, Austria tied the game again, leaving the lobby in dismayed silence.

It was the last of many disappointments throughout the tournament, including when a late goal by Shoja Khalilzadeh gave Iran the lead in its last match, against Egypt, before being ruled offside.

Distractions abounded off the pitch before and during the tournament, beginning with questions over whether Team Melli would even be allowed to play in light of Iran's war with the U.S. and Israel. What followed was Iran's denied request to move its matches to Mexico, a relocation of its base camp from Arizona, and the U.S.'s refusal to grant visas to key members of the Iranian team's staff. The U.S. also rejected Iran's request to travel to the U.S. two days before its Los Angeles matches, though it relaxed some restrictions for Iran's last match.

During a World Cup security briefing Monday, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told reporters that the U.S. had made several accommodations for Iran's travel and repeated assertions that many of the people Iran originally requested to travel with the team to the U.S. were associated with Iran's Revolutionary Guard.

“I'm just glad they're done and they're not coming back," Mullin said, adding that he “might have sung a song or two or maybe even danced a happy dance.”

FIFA did not respond to request for comment.

In a statement to The Associated Press on Monday, the Iranian team said Mullin's remarks showed a lack of commitment to international law and the basic standards expected to host a global tournament.

“The fact that he openly celebrates Iran’s elimination says far more about him than it does about our team. It reflects a level of pettiness that cannot even tolerate the presence of a football team competing on the world’s biggest stage,” said the team, which declined requests to interview players and staff.

Before decamping Tuesday, the team thanked Mexico and Tijuana for their “kindness” but questioned its treatment at the tournament by the U.S.

“What we experienced was a series of decisions, logistical arrangements, and circumstances that undermined the sense of fairness — an impression only reinforced by the events of the final matchday of our group,” the team said in a statement.

Members of the Iranian diaspora were also divided about whether supporting the team showed tacit backing for Iran's theocratic government, which many of them oppose. Some wanted to keep politics and sports separate.

“You don't see someone screaming at (U.S. soccer star) Christian Pulisic for something Trump does,” Modarres said.

Though the team spoke out against its travel restrictions, it avoided commenting directly on the war. But it didn't shy away from spotlighting the victims of a deadly missile strike on an elementary school at the start of the conflict.

Players wore pins with the number “168” when they first landed in Mexico, referencing the number of people, mostly children, killed in the attack, which was likely launched by the U.S. They left a note in the locker room at Los Angeles Stadium, calling for peace “among all nations” and with the hashtags #168 and #minab, the city where the school was located.

Sherry Ghaemi, an Iranian living in Los Angeles, called their stand for the young victims “honorable.”

Amid the strife, players tried to focus on the sport. There were high notes, like when goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand made seven saves to hold Belgium to a scoreless draw, and when Ramin Rezaeian scored off the outside of his boot to equalize against New Zealand.

“They’re going home not as losers, they’re going home as winners," said Ghaemi. “We’re proud of them.”

Meeting some of the players was a thrill for Siavash Khosrowshahi, a 32-year-old Iranian American who drove from Los Angeles to Tijuana on Sunday, the day after the team was eliminated.

“It’s been really tough and stressful,” Khosrowshahi said of the months since the U.S. and Israel started the war. There were times during the conflict when he couldn't reach his parents in Tehran — but not Sunday, when he called his mother from the hotel and surprised her by putting Beiranvand on the phone.

“It’s a source of happiness for her,” he said.

Iranians and Mexicans also deepened a bond, as Tijuana embraced the team throughout its visit.

“Irán, hermano, ya eres Mexicano!" fans chanted in Spanish whenever they saw Team Melli: “Iran, brother, now you are Mexican!”

“Iran is taking home the best of our country, and this city, which is the way in which outsiders are received,” said Arely Ramírez, a Tijuana resident who turned up at the team's hotel Sunday hoping to meet some of the players.

The feeling was mutual.

“We’re leaving Tijuana today, but our heart and soul stay here,” head coach Amir Ghalenoei said Tuesday through an interpreter before the Iranian team left for the airport.

On Monday, many players still looked solemn as they passed their last hours in Mexico. A few signed final autographs and stood for photos with fans, their smiles more muted than the week before.

Despite the disappointment, some supporters were already looking ahead. “This whole year has been bad events, bad luck after bad luck” for Iranians, said Ranjbar. But the AFC Asian Cup is six months away, a new chance for Team Melli, she said. “I'll be watching them play for that.”

This story was first published on June 30, 2026. It was updated on July 2, 2026 to correct that the missile strike on an elementary school happened in the city of Minab, but that is not the name of the school. The school is Shajareh Tayyebeh.

Associated Press reporter Graham Dunbar in Geneva contributed.

Fans wait to greet members of the Iran World Cup soccer team as they leave their hotel for the airport Tuesday, June 30, 2026, in Tijuana, Mexico. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Iran's Alireza Jahanbakhsh greets fans and signs autographs as the Iran World Cup soccer team leaves their hotel for the airport Tuesday, June 30, 2026, in Tijuana, Mexico. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Fans wave flags as the Iran World Cup soccer team leaves their hotel for the airport Tuesday, June 30, 2026, in Tijuana, Mexico. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Fans greet members of the Iran World Cup soccer team as they leave their hotel for the airport Tuesday, June 30, 2026, in Tijuana, Mexico. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Fans greet members of the Iran World Cup soccer team as they leave their hotel for the airport Tuesday, June 30, 2026, in Tijuana, Mexico. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Alaska's major U.S. Senate candidates clashed over the Iran war, soaring c onsumer prices and personal credibility Thursday during a high-stakes debate in a contest that will play into control of the closely divided chamber.

Two-term Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan said the war needs to end soon, and he wants the Strait of Hormuz to open and a deal to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. Democrat Mary Peltola, a former congresswoman, said an agreement is “so far out of sight” and lamented the deaths of 20 military personnel.

“This war is driving up our energy bills and hurting Alaskans with no end in sight,” she said.

Sullivan said the best way to bring down energy costs “is to produce more Alaskan energy by and for Alaskans.”

The debate followed contours of Senate contests around the country, with Peltola blaming the Trump administration for rising gas and consumer prices and pulling back from traditional alliances around the globe, while Sullivan warned that Democratic leadership in Congress would undercut the military and curb domestic energy production.

The debate also took on an edgy, deeply personal tone, as the candidates repeatedly accused each other of being dishonest or misleading.

“I think that Alaskans have had it up to here with the lying and the dishonesty,” Peltola said at one point, addressing her rival.

Sullivan repeatedly accused Peltola of lying throughout their campaign and said “it’s revealed character challenges.”

Foreign conflicts and their impact at home produced some of the sharpest exchanges.

Asked about Ukraine and President Donald Trump's deal to buy Russian oil, Peltola said, “I think it’s so important that we stand with Ukraine and our allies. We have been making new adversaries out of our traditional allies across the globe.”

“I think we should be doing everything in our power to help support them, not bolstering up Russia,” she added.

Sullivan said he was a strong supporter of Ukraine, then said Democrats were always “cutting our military, undermining readiness.”

Peltola appeared to be reading from note cards during several of her answers, at one prompting Sullivan to question the moderators and say he didn’t think the candidates were supposed to get questions ahead of time. A moderator said they did not.

Visits by Trump on Tuesday to conservative Wasilla and by Vice President JD Vance the week before to Fairbanks — the hometown of Sullivan’s wife — underscore the stakes involved as both parties seek control of the chamber. Alaska last elected a Democrat to the Senate in 2008.

The contest is playing out in a turbulent political year in which voter angst over the Iran war, soaring gas and diesel prices, and a rising cost of living have put the House and Senate up for grabs.

Before the debate, noisy supporters of both candidates gathered with signs — and at least one bullhorn — outside the Alaska Public Media studios.

There was a brief moment of agreement when the candidates were asked about the possibility of a third Trump term in the White House. Sullivan said it would be unconstitutional, and Peltola said that the law was clear, "Two terms for every president."

The race also includes two Republicans who have done virtually no campaigning, including another Dan Sullivan. To participate in Thursday's debate, candidates had to win at least 5% of the vote in August's open primary.

Dan J. Sullivan, a retired teacher who dominated attention ahead of the primary and was called a sham candidate by the senator and his allies, including Trump, finished third with about 2.5% of the vote. Dan J. Sullivan said he received no invitations to any candidate forums.

The incumbent, whom Trump repeatedly called the “real Dan Sullivan,” said the energy and enthusiasm generated by the rallies can be important in turning out his voters.

Sullivan finished second to Peltola in the August primary, in which the top four vote-getters, regardless of party affiliation, advanced to the ranked vote general election. Sullivan, a retired Marine, said the race comes down to record, vision and character.

“I saw her up close and personal. It wasn’t pretty,” he told reporters after the debate, referring to Peltola’s time in office.

He said Peltola was ineffective during her time in Congress. But in an interview Wednesday, Peltola said she worked well with Sullivan as part of Alaska’s three-member congressional delegation and said he was engaging in “kind of revisionist history.”

“Our delegation worked so well together the two years that I was there,” she said, citing as accomplishments the approval of the major Willow oil project in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska. Peltola won special and regular elections for the state’s only House seat in 2022 before losing reelection in 2024.

Sullivan also has sought to align Peltola with “Lower 48 liberals” who oppose expanded oil and gas development. Peltola called that claim a diversion from issues such as the war in Iran and high fuel and other costs.

In this photo shot with a smart phone, Democrat Mary Peltola smiles ahead of a debate with Republican U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan in Alaska's Senate race, Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026, in Anchorage, Alaska. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)

In this photo shot with a smart phone, Alaska Republican U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan poses ahead of a debate with Democrat Mary Peltola in Alaska's Senate race, Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026, in Anchorage, Alaska. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)

Democrat Mary Peltola smiles ahead of a debate with Republican U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan in Alaska's Senate race on Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026, in Anchorage, Alaska. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)

Alaska Republican U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan is seen ahead of a debate with Democrat Mary Peltola in Alaska's Senate race on Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026, in Anchorage, Alaska. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)

In this photo shot with a smart phone, supporters of Republican U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan and Democrat Mary Peltola gathered outside the venue where the candidates were set to debate, Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026, in Anchorage, Alaska. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)

In this photo taken with a smartphone, Mary Peltola, a Democrat running for U.S. Senate in Alaska, speaks to a reporter at a picketing event for Horizon Air flight attendants Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026, in Anchorage, Ala. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)

President Donald Trump listens as Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, speaks at a campaign rally at the Curtis D. Menard Memorial Sports Center, Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026, in Wasilla, Alaska. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)