Iran’s football federation and team officials say winger Mehdi Torabi has received new U.S. entry permission after earlier visa terms caused him to miss the rest of the 2022 World Cup. Multiple outlets report that Torabi’s initial visa allowed only a single entry, while other Iranian squad members were issued multiple-entry visas. After Iran’s opening match against New Zealand in Los Angeles, his visa expired, creating a risk that he would have to leave the United States and potentially miss subsequent games.
Reporting varies on timing and wording, but sources agree that the situation is resolved through further coordination among Iran’s federation, FIFA, and U.S. authorities. Al-Monitor and Yahoo Sports say Torabi is later issued a new multiple-entry visa that allows him to remain with Iran for the tournament’s remaining matches. Al Jazeera adds that officials previously said he would need to leave the U.S. hours after each match if his access was not corrected, but the later visa issue is addressed. Free Malaysia Today, Jerusalem Post, and Channel NewsAsia also attribute the problem to an expired visa and state that Iran takes action to obtain a replacement.
