Training sessions cut short, less than a day to prepare in LA, yet Iran held their own against “that” Belgium team. Goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand produced his share of magic as the Red Devils peppered his goal with shots. By the end of the game, the very fans that were booing the national anthem were cheering them off the ground. And yet, head coach Amir Ghalenoei has felt iced out by the other 47 nations.

The Iranian national team head coach reportedly asked all 47 other head coaches/managers a question. What the question was hasn’t been revealed, but Ghalenoei was upset that no head coach had even responded.

“We have many challenges, especially off the pitch,” Ghalenoei said in his post-match press conference (via the Telegraph). “I asked the 47 other coaches a question, and none of them have responded to me.”

What hurt Ghalenoei and his team the most was the sheer lack of support from the organisers and the other 47 teams.

“No, I have not seen [that],” Ghalenoei said when asked if he had felt any support from the other teams. “I have not had any reaction from anyone. But it seems like the honourable coach of Belgium [Rudi Garcia] said [in his presser] we are here for football and not politics.

“Our grievances are to do with the way they [World Cup organisers] have behaved towards us. I’ve not heard from other coaches, they are busy with their own teams, and we did not receive anything. I would have done [it].”

All this comes on the back of travel and other restrictions imposed on the Iranian national team since their arrival in North America for the World Cup. There were questions whether they would even participate in the tournament, but they switched their base. Initially set to be hosted in Arizona, Ghalenoei and his side are currently based in Tijuana, Mexico.

Because America hosts all three of their group stage games, the team must travel back and forth to the US. Their first game, against New Zealand, was in Los Angeles, and after that, they had to return to Mexico immediately. That, for context, isn’t normally the case as their opponents were allowed to stay a day before returning to their base.

That’s what the Iranian team expected as well, but after the final whistle, they were told otherwise. It saw Amir Ghalenoei call them “the most oppressed” team at the 2026 World Cup. The situation was supposed to change for their game against Belgium, with FIFA trying to get the team into the US on Friday to allow them time to prepare.

“They [FIFA] phoned me and said: ‘Are you ready if we get you a flight at 6 pm?’ I welcomed that, but we sat and waited and waited,” Ghalenoei explained. “We waited until 7 pm, nothing happened. ‘OK, sorry, we weren’t able to do that.’ That’s going to affect us mentally, especially me as a head coach”

“I know FIFA is trying its best, I thank them for that, but it doesn’t mean they have succeeded.”

The Telegraph has reported that the situation could change for Iran’s final group-stage game against Egypt. His side also received permission to fly into Seattle two days before the game, as Amir Ghalenoei revealed. That hasn’t been the case so far, with the team flying in less than a day before their games.

Despite all of that, Iran still walked away with a point against one of the tournament’s bigwigs. For forward Alireza Jahanbakhsh, that result was proof of the squad’s character.

Alireza Jahanbakhsh reflects on their draw against Belgium

Few gave Iran a chance despite their incredible comeback draw against New Zealand in their first game. This was, after all, a star-studded Belgium with Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku, and co all set to start. However, by the end of 90 minutes, Iran had won the respect of not just outsiders but also their own fans once again.

Over their first two games at the FIFA World Cup, the Iranian national anthem received mixed reactions. Fans jeered and cheered it against New Zealand, while a loud chorus of boos was evident against Belgium. However, as the game wore on, that changed, especially as goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand made save after save.

“We take both,” Jahanbakhsh told reporters after the match (via the Mirror).

“I think there are good days, bad days for every team, and also, like I said, we play for all the Iranians in Iran, outside Iran, with whatever ideology, whatever preferences they have, and we make sure to make them happy, because I’m sure at the end of the day, they love Team Mali from the heart, and we respect them all.”

In fact, when Mehdi Taremi had the ball in the net, cheers rang across from every corner of the stadium. The boos that followed the correct VAR decision to disallow it matched the cheers before. That trend continued when Belgium were shown a red card. In the end, despite a few big chances, Iran couldn’t make the Red Devils pay.

“And I think the most important thing we can do as a team is to perform well, to make sure we put our heart on the pitch, and to do everything to make them happy,” Jahanbakhsh added.

“And for the rest, I think that’s something we have to respect people, whatever idea they have, and like I said, the best thing we can do is to play football, and hopefully we can do it in the best way possible.”

With two points from two games, Iran remains firmly in the hunt for a place in the knockout rounds. Whether or not the off-field issues ease, Amir Ghalenoei’s side have already shown that they are capable of competing with the tournament’s biggest names.