A US special envoy has asked the International Football Association Board (FIFA) to replace Iran with Italy at this summer's World Cup finals in the United States, Mexico and Canada.
The US special envoy for global partnerships, Paolo Zampolli, told the Financial Times.
- I was born in Italy and it would be a dream to see the Italian national team at a tournament held in the United States.
- With four World Cup titles, the team has the necessary merits to justify a place, Zampolli told the newspaper.
He says he has suggested the replacement to both FIFA President Gianni Infantino and US President Donald Trump.
Italy failed to qualify for this summer's World Cup finals after a painful defeat to Bosnia and Herzegovina at the end of March.
The defeat sparked a storm of criticism in Italy, and the president of the Italian Football Federation ended up resigning from his post.
The United States and Israel attacked Iran at the end of February, which a few days later cast doubt on the country's participation in this summer's World Cup.
Later, the president of the Iranian Football Federation, Mehdi Taj, said that Iran would boycott the United States, but not the World Cup finals.
Fatemeh Mohejerani, a spokesperson for the Iranian government, told Iranian state television on Wednesday that the national team is fully prepared to participate in the finals.
Infantino said at a press conference last week that he is convinced that Iran will participate in this summer's World Cup finals despite the war in the Middle East.
The White House declined to comment on Zampolli's proposal to the Financial Times on Wednesday.
/ritzau/
