[57189] Economic difficulties in the national football team's preparations and the roadmap for the World Cup and Nations League

{"header": "Budgetary crisis in the Iranian national football team", "content": "[Iran International Sport reports that heads of the Iranian Football Federation, led by Mehdi Taj and national team coach Amir Ghalenoei, held urgent meetings with representatives of the Planning and Budget Organization to secure immediate funding for a training camp in Turkey. According to the report, the cash shortage has led to the consecutive cancellation of international friendly matches, forcing the team to settle for internal matches only. At the same time, IRNA news agency (considered an official mouthpiece of the government) quoted former defender Pashazadeh, who claims that Iranian football suffers from a \"lack of international-standard players\" and criticized the lack of investment in youth in favor of immediate results."}, {"header": "World Cup preparations and global criticism", "content": "Ali Alipour, a national team player, responded in an interview to criticism regarding the possibility of Iran's exclusion from the World Cup, emphasizing that the players are not affected by political statements. Simultaneously, Iran International Sport exposed the high prices of the 2026 World Cup, noting that at the peak of the event, a ticket to the final reached $32,970, which sparked widespread public criticism over football becoming a \"sport for the wealthy only.\""}, {"header": "Volleyball plans and AFC Asian Cup", "content": "In the volleyball sector, the Iranian national team will begin the qualifying stage of the 2026 Nations League on June 10. Iran International Sport details that the team will compete in three weeks of matches against strong opponents in Brazil, France, and Serbia. Meanwhile, Football Bartar Channel reported on the 2027 Asian Cup draw, where Iran was placed in Group C with China, Kyrgyzstan, and Syria. The AFC noted that Iran under coach Ghalenoei is aiming to break the long drought without winning the continental title."}]