Ghalenoei names preliminary Iran squad
Head coach Amir Ghalenoei has selected an initial 30-strong IR Iran squad for the FIFA World Cup, with forward Sardar Azmoun a notable omission.
Just over a month out from their FIFA World Cup 2026™ opener with New Zealand, head coach Amir Ghalenoei has named an extended IR Iran squad as the nation prepares to head to a fourth consecutive finals.
The 30-strong selection will travel next week to Türkiye, where they will face Gambia in a pre-tournament international in Antalya on 29 May before shifting to their base camp in Arizona.
Alireza Beiranvand, Seyed Hossein Hosseini Mohammad Khalifeh Payam Niazmand
Danial Eiri Ehsan Hajsafi Saleh Hardani Hossein Kanaani Shoja Khalilzadeh Milad Mohammadi Ali Nemati Omid Noorafkan Ramin Rezaeian
Rouzbeh Cheshmi Saeid Ezatolahi Mehdi Ghaedi Saman Ghoddos Mohammad Ghorbani Alireza Jahanbakhsh Mohammad Mohebi Amir Mohammad Razzaghinia Mehdi Torabi Aria Yousefi
Ali Alipour Dennis Dargahi Hadi Habibinejad Amirhossein Hosseinzadeh Amirhossein Mahmoudi Kasra Taheri Mehdi Taremi
All squads are provisional until the final list of 26 players is announced by FIFA, following their submission by participating teams, on 2 June.
Ghalenoei’s extended squad is heavy on experience, with star forward Mehdi Taremi one of almost a dozen players to have accrued half a century of caps or more.
There was, though, no place for the nation’s third-highest scorer Sardar Azmoun, Belgian-based winger Allahyar Sayyadmanesh or young midfielder Mohammad Javad Hosseinnejad.
The vastly experienced coach told the FFIRI website that selecting the extended group was an incredibly challenging task.
"Selecting 30 players for this final training camp ahead of the World Cup was the most difficult technical decision of my coaching career," he said.
After that Group G opener, Team Melli remain in Los Angeles to face Belgium before the group closer in Seattle against Egypt on 26 June.
15 June: IR Iran v New Zealand - Los Angeles Stadium
21 June: Belgium v IR Iran - Los Angeles Stadium
26 June: Egypt v IR Iran - Seattle Stadium