Iran national football team

Iran national football team

The Iran national football team have represented Iran in men's international football since their first international match in 1941. It is administered by the Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran (FFIRI), the governing body of football in Iran, which is affiliated with AFC and comes under the global jurisdiction of FIFA.

Regionally, Iran has won four WAFF Championships and one CAFA Nations Cup. At the continental level, the country has won three AFC Asian Cup championships ((/wiki/1968AFCAsianCup), (/wiki/1972AFCAsianCup), and (/wiki/1976AFCAsianCup)), three Asian Games ((/wiki/Footballatthe1974AsianGames), (/wiki/Footballatthe1990AsianGames), and (/wiki/Footballatthe1998AsianGames)), and the AFC–OFC Challenge Cup (2003).

Iran's best performance at the global level was reaching the quarterfinals at the 1976 Summer Olympics. The team has appeared at 12 qualifiers of the FIFA World Cup and qualified seven times ((/wiki/1978FIFAWorldCup), (/wiki/1998FIFAWorldCup), (/wiki/2006FIFAWorldCup), (/wiki/2014FIFAWorldCup), (/wiki/2018FIFAWorldCup), (/wiki/2022FIFAWorldCup) and (/wiki/2026FIFAWorldCup)); Iran has never progressed beyond the group stages, but has won three matches: against the United States in 1998, Morocco in 2018, and Wales in 2022.

History

Early years

The first Iran football team that traveled to Baku, USSR in 1926

The Iranian Football Federation was founded in 1920. In 1926, Tehran XI (selected players from Tehran Club, Toofan, and Armenian Sports Club) traveled across the border to Baku, Soviet Union; this was the first away football match for an Iranian team. This Tehran Select team is the predecessor of Iran's national football team.

The first match that Team Melli played was on 23 August 1941, away at Kabul in a 1–0 win against British India while Iran's first FIFA international match was on 25 August 1941, away at Afghanistan.

Iran won three AFC Asian Cups in (/wiki/1968AFCAsianCup), (/wiki/1972AFCAsianCup), and (/wiki/1976AFCAsianCup), the latter being their most recent Asian Cup win. In (/wiki/1978FIFAWorldCup), Iran made its first appearance in the FIFA World Cup after defeating Australia in Tehran. They lost two of three group stage matches against the Netherlands and Peru, and only earned one point by drawing Scotland, in a match that saw Iraj Danaeifard cancel out an own goal scored by Andranik Eskandarian for a score of 1–1.

Iran playing in the 1978 World Cup against Scotland in Córdoba, Argentina

After the Iranian Revolution

After the Iranian Revolution, football was somewhat neglected. During the 1980s, the Iranian national team did not feature in World Cup competitions due to the Iran–Iraq War (1980–88) and domestic football embraced the inevitable effects of conflict. The national team withdrew from the Asian qualifiers for the 1982 FIFA World Cup and refused to participate in the qualifiers for the 1986 FIFA World Cup because of having to play on neutral ground. The war and political upheavals left Iran without major club competitions until 1989 when the Qods League was established. A year later, the Qods League was renamed the Azadegan League. Despite failing to qualify for both the (/wiki/1990FIFAWorldCup) and (/wiki/1994FIFAWorldCup) World Cups, it was said that during this period, a number of quality players burst onto the Iranian football scene laying the foundation for third place in the 1996 AFC Asian Cup (victories in that tournament included a 3–0 victory against Saudi Arabia and a 6–2 victory against South Korea) and their second stab at World Cup glory in (/wiki/1998FIFAWorldCup).

1998–2006

On 29 November 1997, Iran qualified for the 1998 FIFA World Cup after eliminating Australia in a close playoff series. After being tied 3–3 on aggregate, Iran advanced due to the away goals rule; Iran held Australia to a 1–1 draw at home, and a 2–2 draw in Melbourne.

At their first game at the 1998 FIFA World Cup against Yugoslavia, Iran lost 1–0 to a free kick by Siniša Mihajlović. Iran recorded their first World Cup victory in the second game beating and eliminating the United States 2–1 with Hamid Estili and Mehdi Mahdavikia scoring goals for Iran. The Iran-US World Cup match was preheated with certain excitement because of each country's political stance after the Iranian revolution and the Iran hostage crisis. However, in an act of defiance against all forms of hatred or politics in sports, both sides presented one another with gifts and flowers and took ceremonial pictures before the match kickoff. Iran played against Germany in the third game, losing 2–0 courtesy of goals from Oliver Bierhoff and Jürgen Klinsmann, finishing third in the group with 3 points.

Iran finished first in the group stage of the 2000 AFC Asian Cup but lost to South Korea in the quarter-finals. They failed to qualify for 2002 FIFA World Cup, held in Asia for the first time, after an aggregate defeat to the Republic of Ireland, losing 2–0 in Dublin and winning 1–0 in Tehran. The elimination saw manager Miroslav Blažević step down from the top spot to be replaced by his assistant Branko Ivanković who stepped up from assistant coach.

After qualifying to the 2004 AFC Asian Cup, Iran was drawn with Thailand, Oman and Japan in the tournament. Iran finished second in the group. In the quarter-final clash against South Korea, Iran won 4–3. They then lost to host China on penalty kicks, and won against Bahrain 4–2 to finish third place in the tournament.

Iran scores against Angola at the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

On 8 June 2005, Iran and Japan became the first countries other than hosts Germany to qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. The match between the two countries in Tehran, played on 24 March 2005, was the highest attended qualifying match among all confederations. The match ended with five fans dead and several others injured as they left the Azadi Stadium at the end of the match.

Iran started their 2006 FIFA World Cup appearance in Germany with a match against North America's Mexico in Group D. Being 1–1 at half-time, defensive mistakes led to a Mexican 3–1 win, with goals from Omar Bravo and Sinha. Yahya Golmohammadi scored the only Iranian goal. Team Melli played against Portugal in the second game, losing 2–0. The goals were scored by Deco and a penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo. Iran were eliminated from the competition before their third and final game against Angola, a 1–1 draw.

Temporary suspension

In November 2006, Iran was suspended by FIFA from all participation in international football on the grounds of governmental interference in the national football association. The ban lasted less than a month and as a dispensation was given to allow the Iran under-23 team to participate in the football competition of the 2006 Asian Games, fixtures were unaffected.

2007–2014

The IRIFF appointed Amir Ghalenoei as manager of Iran on 17 July 2006 to succeed Branko Ivanković. After finishing first in the 2007 AFC Asian Cup qualifying round two points ahead of South Korea, Iran placed first in the group stage of the final tournament in Malaysia, eventually losing to their qualifying opponents in a penalty shoot-out in the quarterfinals. His contract was not renewed and Team Melli was left with a caretaker manager for several months.

Then-leading international goalscorer Ali Daei was chosen to become the new manager after Spanish coach Javier Clemente had been closer to signing on as Iran's national team manager, when talks collapsed when he refused to live full-time in the country. Iran was placed with Kuwait, Syria and United Arab Emirates in the third round of 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying. Ali Daei resigned from his position as the Iranian national coach on 29 March 2009, replaced by Afshin Ghotbi. Iran failed to qualify for the 2010 World Cup after finishing fourth overall in its group.

During the final game of the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against South Korea in Seoul on 17 June 2009, seven members of the team wore green wristbands in support of the Iranian Green Movement during the 2009 Iranian election protests. Initial rumors and false reports were that all seven players were banned for life by the Iranian Football Federation, however, state-run media claimed that all seven had "retired". On 24 June 2009, FIFA wrote to Iran's Football Federation asking for clarification on the situation. The Iranian Football Federation replied that no disciplinary action has been taken against any player.

Afshin Ghotbi renewed his contract until the end of 2011 AFC Asian Cup and the team qualified for the tournament with 13 points as group winners. During the final qualification match against South Korea, several Iranian players started the match wearing green armbands or wristbands, a symbol of protest at the outcome of the Iranian presidential election. Most removed them at half-time. The newspaper Iran reported that Ali Karimi, Mehdi Mahdavikia, Hosein Kaebi and Vahid Hashemian had received life bans from the Iranian FA for the gesture. However, the Iranian FA denied this claim in a response to FIFA's inquiry saying that "the comments in foreign media are nothing but lies and a mischievous act." Head coach Afshin Ghotbi also confirmed that it was a rumour and the Iranian FA "has not taken any official stand on this issue."

Afshin Ghotbi qualified Iran for the 2011 Asian Cup and finished second in the 2010 WAFF Championship just a few months before the Asian Cup. Iran were able to gain all nine possible points in the group stage of the Asian Cup but after an extra time goal from South Korea, Iran were yet again eliminated from the quarter-finals.

On 4 April 2011, former Real Madrid manager Carlos Queiroz agreed to a two-and-a-half-year deal to coach the Iranian national team until the end of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. Under Queiroz, Iran began their 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign successfully, defeating the Maldives 4–0 in the first leg of their second round of qualifiers. After winning 5–0 on aggregate, Iran advanced to the third round of qualifiers where they were drawn with Indonesia, Qatar and Bahrain.

Iran's squad in July 2011 against Maldives. Manager: Carlos Queiroz. Standing left to right: Aghili, Hosseini, Haddadifar, Ansarifard, Zare, Pooladi; sitting left to right: Heydari, Norouzi, Rahmati, Khalatbari, Karimi.

Iran topped their group by defeating Bahrain 6–0 at home in the Azadi Stadium as well as inviting former German youth international Ashkan Dejagah who scored twice on his debut against Qatar. After a 4–1 win at Indonesia, Iran qualified for the final round of direct qualifiers, the fourth round. In the fourth round, Iran played South Korea, Qatar, Uzbekistan and Lebanon in their group. Queiroz made new foreign-based additions to his squad, adding players such as Reza Ghoochannejhad.

Iran started the fourth round of Asian qualifiers with a 1–0 win in Uzbekistan. Team Melli then drew Qatar and lost in Lebanon before defeating South Korea at the Azadi on 16 October with a goal from captain Javad Nekounam. After a 1–0 loss in Tehran against Uzbekistan, Iran defeated Qatar 1–0 in Doha and Lebanon 4–0 at home. In their last qualification match, Iran defeated South Korea 1–0 in Ulsan Munsu with a goal from Ghoochannejhad, clinching their ticket to Brazil as group winners with 16 points. Thus, Iran became the third team that Queiroz has managed to qualify for the World Cup, having reached the 2002 edition with South Africa and the 2010 edition with Portugal, leading the latter to a knockout stage finish. Iran continued their winning streak, securing qualification to the 2015 Asian Cup months later as well.

Iran v Argentina at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil

Since Queiroz's role as manager of the Iranian national team, he has introduced players from the Iranian diaspora to the national squad. These players include German-Iranians Daniel Davari and Ashkan Dejagah, Dutch-Iranian Reza Ghoochannejhad, Swedish-Iranians Omid Nazari and Saman Ghoddos, and Iranian-American Steven Beitashour among others.

Iran competed in Group F alongside Argentina, Nigeria and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Prior to the tournament, they founded the Central Asian Football Association.

In the opening match of the tournament on 16 June, Iran drew Nigeria 0–0 making it their first clean sheet in the World Cup. In their next match, Iran was defeated by Argentina 1–0 with a late goal from Lionel Messi and received praise after holding Argentina for 90 minutes while creating some attacking opportunities of their own. Iran was eliminated from the tournament in their next game, a 3–1 defeat to Bosnia and Herzegovina. Iran's lone goal was scored by Reza Ghoochannejhad. After the tournament, Queiroz declared he would resign as manager of Iran but later switched and extended his contract until the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

Late 2010s

Iran qualified for the 2015 AFC Asian Cup as group winners where Team Melli were the highest ranked seed. Iran faced Bahrain, Qatar and the UAE in Group C. With the second highest number of fans in the tournament after hosts Australia, the Iranians defeated Bahrain 2–0 with limited preparations. A defensive-minded Iran then defeated Qatar 1–0 thanks to a Sardar Azmoun goal before defeating UAE by the same scoreline to reach the top of their group. In the quarter-finals Iran faced Iraq who they had beaten weeks prior in a friendly match. Having received a controversial red card in the first half, Iran competed with ten men, managing to score goals late in extra time to draw the match 3–3. In the ensuing penalty shootout, Iran lost 7–6.

Iran's squad against Portugal in Mordovia Arena at the 2018 FIFA World Cup

Iran began their 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign with friendly matches against Chile and Sweden in March 2015. Queiroz resigned from his managerial post thereafter due to disagreements with the Iranian Football Federation. On 14 April 2015, Iran were drawn with Oman, India, Turkmenistan and Guam in the second round of qualifiers. On 26 April, Queiroz announced that he would continue as the manager of Iran for their 2018 World Cup campaign. Iran became the second team to qualify for the 2018 World Cup after a 2–0 win at home over Uzbekistan on 12 June 2017. They also clinched first place in their qualification group after South Korea's defeat to Qatar.

Iran won the first match against Morocco after Aziz Bouhaddouz scoring an own goal. They then lost against Spain with a goal scored by Diego Costa, with video assistant referees denying an Iranian equalizer. The third match against Portugal ended in a draw after a penalty scored by Karim Ansarifard in the stoppage time, while Cristiano Ronaldo missed a penalty when Iran was trailing, with Alireza Beiranvand making a decisive save and because Morocco could only manage a 2–2 draw to Spain, Iran were eliminated. Iran's four points is the most received in any World Cup appearance.

Iran's squad against China at the 2019 AFC Asian Cup

Azmoun and Taremi played a key role in the front line of the team in these years.

Having qualified for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup earlier, Iran was drawn into group D, where they shared fate with Iraq, Vietnam and Yemen. Iran opened their tournament against Yemen, nearly conceding a goal early but after 10 minutes, Iran regained the ground and proved more dominant in certain aspects, thrashing Yemen 5–0. A 2–0 win over the Vietnamese side gave Iran direct qualification to the knockout stage. Iran ended their group stage with a goalless draw over neighbor Iraq and took first place. After the group stage, Iran encountered Oman, with a defending mistake almost costing Iran's chances but Ahmed Mubarak Al-Mahaijri's penalty was saved by Alireza Beiranvand. Iran then defeated Oman 2–0 to reach the last eight. In the quarter-finals against a defensive China, Iran outclassed the Chinese 3–0 to meet Japan in the semi-finals. Iran missed the opportunity to reach the final once again when they fell 3–0 with all three goals scored in second half.

Early 2020s

Iran's squad against England at the 2022 FIFA World Cup

Iran was the highest-ranked team to be seeded in the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification, being drawn into the second round where they would deal with two Arab countries, Iraq and Bahrain, along with Cambodia and Hong Kong. Iran, under new Belgian manager Marc Wilmots, began with a 2–0 away win over Hong Kong. After the death of Sahar Khodayari, the 14–0 win over Cambodia allowed select Iranian women to enter the stadium for the first time since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Their next away encounters against Bahrain and Iraq went on to be consecutive defeats which Iran lost 0–1 and 1–2, respectively. Following two consecutive draws between Iraq and Bahrain, Iran was left with the possibility of being eliminated from the World Cup outright in the second round, leading to the sacking of Marc Wilmots.

The COVID-19 pandemic in Iran forced the remaining fixtures to be played without spectators in June 2021, forcing Iran to play their remaining games in Bahrain under new coach Dragan Skočić; but with Bahrain losing its home support as an advantage, and Iraq assured a place in the final phase, Iran was able to stage a comeback, occupying first place and, together with Iraq, progressed to the final phase.

Iran became the thirteenth team to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup after a 1–0 win at home over Iraq on 27 January 2022. In March 2022, Iranian women were again banned from entering the stadium for a World Cup qualifier. Iran's World Cup preparation friendly match against Canada at BC Place in June 2022 was cancelled by the Canadian Soccer Association amid opposition and mounting criticism, namely in regards to the Iranian government's role in shooting down Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752.

By the start of the World Cup in Qatar, Iran was the highest ranked team from Asia. In October 2022, calls were made to ban the Iranian national team from the World Cup for the Iranian government's blocking of Iranian women from their stadiums, their supplying of weapons to Russia during the invasion of Ukraine, and the treatment towards protesters during the Mahsa Amini protests. However, Iran started its World Cup campaign with a nightmare, losing 2–6 to England in the opening game as Iran suffered the worst ever loss in its FIFA World Cup history. The Iranian team notably made headlines in their opening match against England after refusing to sing the national anthem in solidarity with the Mahsa Amini protests, with some Iranian supporters cheering against their own team or boycotting their team amidst the ongoing protests as they felt the team was representing the government.

In the following match against Wales, amidst the boos and whistles from some of the Iranian supporters during the playing of the national anthem, the Iranian players were filmed singing the national anthem before defeating Wales 2–0 for their first-ever win over a European nation at the World Cup, with some protestors having their pre-revolutionary Lion and Sun flags and Women, Life, Freedom banners snatched from them by pro-government fans and stadium security at the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium. Protesters were harassed by government supporters with some protesters being detained by Qatari police, while stadium security confirmed they were given orders to confiscate anything but the flag of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Documents obtained by Iran International showed Iran was coordinating secret efforts with Qatar to control who attends the World Cup and restrict any signs of dissent.

Ahead of Iran's final group stage match against the United States, the Iranian players were allegedly called in to a meeting with members of the IRGC and were threatened with violence and torture for their families if they did not sing the national anthem or joined the protests against the Iranian regime. During the match, the Iranian players sang the national anthem again before losing to the United States 1–0 for the first time in their history and thereby being knocked out of the tournament, being the only team to finish third in the group with three points instead of four. Many Iranians celebrated the defeat and one Iranian man was killed by security forces in Bandar-e Anzali after honking his car horn in celebration. Another Iranian fan was also arrested by Qatari police after he was wearing a shirt with the Woman, Life, Freedom slogan.

During the FIFA World Cup as well as the 2023 AFC Asian Cup, the Iranian government reportedly sent paid members of the Basij and IRGC to cheer for the team in the stands. Iran were eventually knocked out in the semi-final of the Asian Cup by hosts Qatar. After the game, Iranian officials reportedly arrested ten teenagers in the city of Javanrud for celebrating the team's elimination from the tournament.

2026 FIFA World Cup Qualification

Iran qualified for the 2026 FIFA World Cup on 25 March 2025 following a 2–2 home draw against Uzbekistan in the third round of AFC qualification.

World Cup Draw and Pride Match Controversy

They were placed in pot 2 for the World Cup draw and were subsequently drawn into Group G alongside Belgium, Egypt, and New Zealand.

Prior to the draw, a group stage match scheduled to be played in Seattle was designated as a "Pride Match" by the City of Seattle to coincide with the city's annual Pride celebrations and to promote LGBT inclusion. Following the draw, the fixture was confirmed to be the match between Iran and Egypt. Both Iran and Egypt are countries where homosexuality is criminalized under domestic law, with Iran in particular having imposed capital punishment in certain cases. The Iranian Football Federation and the Egyptian Football Association objected to the match's designation; however, FIFA and local organizers confirmed that associated LGBT events would proceed, and that rainbow flags would be permitted inside the stadium.

2025–26 Iranian Protests and Impact on Football

In January 2026, multiple Iranian footballers and athletes were killed by the Iranian regime during the 2026 Iran massacres amid the 2025–2026 Iranian protests, including former Tractor Sazi F.C. midfielder Mojtaba Tarshiz, prompting former Iran national team captain Masoud Shojaei to criticise FIFA for its silence over the killing of Iranian athletes during protests, while then-captain Mehdi Taremi expressed solidarity with the Iranian people.

Following the massacres, activists called on FIFA to ban the Iranian national team from the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Ali Karimi, a former footballer for the Iran national team, along with a coalition of prominent Iranians, wrote an open letter to FIFA and all its member associations, calling on FIFA president Gianni Infantino to speak up on the protest deaths. Following the protests and ensuing crackdown, the Spanish Football Federation reportedly pulled out of a planned friendly match with Iran.

Amid the Iran war, Sardar Azmoun was reportedly expelled from the national team after posting a picture of himself with the ruler of the UAE on social media. On 30 April 2026, protests were held outside the 2026 FIFA Congress in Vancouver, calling on FIFA to ban the Iranian team and stating that it represents and recruits players from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) instead of the people of Iran.

On 19 May, it was reported that FIFA would again ban the pre-revolutionary Lion and Sun flag from World Cup stadiums, similar to previous World Cups. On 25 May, President Claudia Sheinbaum announced that Mexico will host the team for the World Cup after Trump administration refused to host the team in the United States during its war against Iran.

US visa disputes

According to reports, several members of the support staff for the Iranian national football team were denied entry visas to the United States, leading to a diplomatic dispute just days before the team was scheduled to compete in the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The Iranian embassy in Turkey issued a statement claiming that visas were refused for "a large part of the management and executive staff, technical advisors, and others who are an integral part of any national football team," arguing that the United States government was "effectively depriving the Iranian national team of its right to play in the World Cup under normal conditions and without undue pressure and stress."

Among those reportedly excluded from receiving visas was Mehdi Taj, the head of the Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran (FFIRI). The Tasnim news agency reported that three additional FFIRI officials—executive director Mehdi Kharati, secretary general Hedayat Mombini, and media director Mohsen Motamedkia—had also not received visas, and were expected to travel with the team to Mexico while efforts to secure them continued. In response, the FFIRI issued a statement asserting that the conduct of the United States, as a co-host of the tournament, "contradicts international sporting rules," and that "the US government, continuing its hostile actions against the Iranian national team, has taken an unsportsmanlike and purely political decision to deny visas to key management and administrative members of the Iranian national football team." The federation also called on FIFA, as the world governing body of football, to pursue and finalize visa arrangements for the team's managerial, executive, technical, and support staff.

Meanwhile, Iran's ambassador to Mexico, Abolfazl Pasandideh, told reporters that the squad had been informed that under the terms of the visas issued, the team must enter and leave United States territory on the same day as its matches, adding: "We can enter in the morning and we must leave the same day."

2026 World Cup

Despite the visa dispute and training in Mexico, the Iranian national team flew to the US for its first two games in the tournament. In the first game Iran came twice from behind to draw 2-2 against New Zealand, with R. Rezaeian M. Mohebi scoring for Iran. Mohammad Mohebi's goal celebration sparked controversy after he appeared to mimic a finger-gun gesture while celebrating. The match was already politically charged, with pre-revolutionary Iranian flags visible in the crowd despite FIFA's restrictions. The incident added another layer of debate, as social media users widely discussed the meaning and appropriateness of the celebration. Mohebi later denied any political intent, stating that it was simply a celebratory gesture and nothing more. In its second game Iran drew 0-0 against Belgium. It was reported that the team left a handwritten note in the dressing room of SoFi Stadium after the game calling for peace: "may peace, respect and friendship prevail among all nations". They left a similar message in the dressing room of Lumen Field after their third and final game of the tournament against Egypt which ended 1-1. Despite not qualifying for the knockout round, this was the first time Iran finished an iteration of the World Cup without a loss and became the only undefeated team to not advance to the knockout stage.

Team image

Nicknames

The Iranian national team has received several nicknames by supporters and media. The most common one used is Team Melli (meaning "National Team" in Persian). Although the Iranian supporters have popularized Team Melli, other nicknames for the team include Shiran e Iran, ("Lions of Iran"), and "Princes of Persia" (used since AFC Asian Cup 2011). Iran's slogan for the 2014 FIFA World Cup was Honour of Persia, selected in an internet poll held by FIFA. A more recently used nickname, due to the presence of the Asiatic cheetah on the 2014 World Cup jersey, is Yuzpalangan which means "The Cheetahs"; the team mascot "Yupa" is also a cheetah, although this has been seen as a government propaganda ploy to wane people away from the lion nickname due to the pre-revolutionary Lion and Sun.

Kits and crests

Traditionally, Iran national football team's home kit is white, and the away kit is red. Sometimes, green shirts with white shorts and red socks are used.

Kit suppliers

The table below shows the history of kit suppliers for the Iranian national football team.

Kit supplier	Period
Adidas	1978
Puma	1980
Amini	1981–1993
Shekari	1993–1998
Puma	1998–2000
Shekari	2000–2003
Daei Sport	2003–2006
Puma	2006–2007
Merooj	2007–2008
Daei Sport	2008–2009
Legea	2009–2012
Uhlsport	2012–2016
Givova	2016
Adidas	2016–2019
Uhlsport	2019–2022
Merooj	2022–present

Sponsorship

On 1 February 2014, Iran announced the addition of the endangered Asiatic cheetah on their 2014 FIFA World Cup kits to bring attention to its conservation efforts.

Rivalries

Iran and Iraq are neighboring rivals. According to the Malay Mail, "Emotions are always high when Iran and Iraq meet on the football pitch". In the contemporary era, especially during the reign of Saddam Hussein, the two countries had worsened relations and fought the Iran–Iraq War for 8 years. In 2001, for the first time in decades, an Iran-Iraq match was not held at a neutral venue. The rivalry was escalated after Iraq knocked Iran out of the 2015 AFC Asian Cup in controversial circumstances. Iran leads the series with 18 wins, 7 draws and 6 losses.

Iran and Saudi Arabia are ideological rivals. The game was ranked eighth in Goal.com's 2010 list of "Football's 10 Greatest International Rivalries". and ninth in Bleacher Report's 2014 list of "International Football's 10 Most Politically-Charged Football Rivalries" All of their matches have been competitive; none of them were friendlies. The first match was played on 24 August 1975, with Iran defeating Saudi Arabia 3–0. Iran leads the series with 5 wins, 6 draws and 4 losses.

Stadiums

Azadi Stadium, 1991

Since 1972, Iran's national stadium has been Tehran's Azadi Stadium with a nominal capacity of 78,116 spectators. Azadi Stadium is the 28th largest association football stadium in the world, seventh in Asia and first in West Asia. A record was set in Azadi for the 1998 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Australia with over 128,000 in attendance. Since (/wiki/IranianRevolution), the government restricts Iranian women from entering the stadiums. However, FIFA condemned the move and wrote to Iranian Football Federation in June 2019. The federation in their letter gave deadline to uplift the restrictions and let women enter the stadiums. On 25 August 2019, deputy Sports Minister Jamshid Taghizadeh stated: "Women can go to Tehran's Azadi stadium to watch the match between Iran's national team and Cambodia in October for the Qatar World Cup qualifier." After the death of Sahar Khodayari, select Iranian women were allowed to attend the match against Cambodia in October 2019. However, in March 2022, Iranian women were again blocked from entering the stadium for a FIFA World Cup qualifier.

From 1942 to 1972, Amjadieh Stadium was Iran's national stadium. Other stadiums that Iran has played international games at are Bagh Shomal and Yadegar Emam Stadium (Tabriz), Takhti Stadium (Tehran), Enghelab Stadium (Karaj), Hafezieh Stadium (Shiraz), Takhti Stadium and Imam Reza Stadium (Mashhad).

The Iran National Football Camp is the team's training ground.

Results and fixtures

Iran national football team

All opponents that the Iran football team has played at least once

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

Coaching staff

Iran national football team

Current head coach Amir Ghalenoei

Position	Name
Head Coach	Amir Ghalenoei
Assistant Coach(es)	Rahman Rezaei
	Andranik Teymourian
	Saeed Alhoei
	Human Afazeli
Goalkeeping Coach	Alin Dincă
Fitness Coach	Ali Asghar Ghorbanalipour
Physiotherapist	Alireza Shahab
Team Doctor	Parhan Khanlari
Masseurs	Amir Esmaeili
	Hadi Nejatpour
Team Supervisor	Mehdi Kharati
Team Management	Mahdi Mohammadnabi

Players

Current squad

The following players have been called up to participate in the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Caps and goals updated as of 26 June 2026, after the match against Egypt.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	GK	Alireza Beiranvand	21 September 1992	89	0	Tractor
12	GK	Payam Niazmand	6 April 1995	15	0	Persepolis
22	GK	Hossein Hosseini	30 June 1992	13	0	Sepahan
2	DF	Saleh Hardani	26 December 1998	20	1	Esteghlal
3	DF	Ehsan Hajsafi (captain)	25 February 1990	148	7	Sepahan
4	DF	Shojae Khalilzadeh	14 May 1989	61	2	Tractor
5	DF	Milad Mohammadi	29 September 1993	79	1	Maxline Vitebsk
13	DF	Hossein Kanaanizadegan	23 March 1994	67	6	Persepolis
17	DF	Aria Yousefi	22 April 2002	15	1	Sepahan
19	DF	Ali Nemati	7 February 1996	21	0	Lusail
23	DF	Ramin Rezaeian	21 March 1990	77	10	Foolad
25	DF	Danial Eiri	26 October 2003	0	0	Persepolis
6	MF	Saeid Ezatolahi	1 October 1996	86	2	Shabab Al-Ahli
7	MF	Alireza Jahanbakhsh	11 August 1993	101	17	Excelsior
8	MF	Mohammad Mohebi	20 December 1998	40	15	Unattached
14	MF	Saman Ghoddos	6 September 1993	71	3	Kalba
15	MF	Rouzbeh Cheshmi	24 July 1993	40	3	Esteghlal
16	MF	Mahdi Torabi	10 September 1994	53	7	Tractor
21	MF	Mohammad Ghorbani	21 May 2001	17	0	Al-Wahda
26	MF	Amirmohammad Razzaghinia	11 April 2006	4	0	Esteghlal
9	FW	Mehdi Taremi	18 July 1992	108	60	Al Wasl
10	FW	Mehdi Ghayedi	5 December 1998	31	10	Al-Nasr
11	FW	Ali Alipour	11 November 1995	15	1	Persepolis
18	FW	Amirhossein Hosseinzadeh	30 October 2000	20	5	Tractor
20	FW	Shahriyar Moghanlou	21 December 1994	24	2	Tractor
24	FW	Dennis Eckert	9 January 1997	0	0	Standard Liège

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called up to the team in the last 12 months.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Mohammad Khalifeh	19 August 2004	0	0	Aluminium Arak	2026 FIFA World Cup PRE
GK	Mohammad Reza Akhbari	15 February 1993	1	0	Gol Gohar	v.  Uzbekistan, 18 November 2025
GK	Ahmad Gohari	12 January 1996	0	0	Sanat Naft Abadan	2025 CAFA Nations Cup
GK	Nima Mirzazad	27 February 1997	0	0	Unattached	2025 CAFA Nations Cup
DF	Aref Aghasi	2 January 1997	6	0	Esteghlal	Tehran Training Camp, 19 April 2026
DF	Danial Esmaeilifar	18 March 1993	6	0	Tractor	Tehran Training Camp, 19 April 2026
DF	Hossein Abarghouei	17 September 1997	1	0	Persepolis	Tehran Training Camp, 19 April 2026
DF	Masoud Mohebi	6 February 2005	0	0	Kheybar Khorramabad	Tehran Training Camp, 19 April 2026
DF	Abolfazl Jalali	26 June 1998	8	0	Persepolis	v.  Costa Rica, 31 March 2026
DF	Saman Fallah	12 May 2001	4	0	Esteghlal	v.  Costa Rica, 31 March 2026
DF	Majid Hosseini	20 June 1996	30	0	Unattached	v.  Uzbekistan, 18 November 2025
DF	Amin Hazbavi	6 May 2003	7	0	Sepahan	2025 Al Ain International Cup PRE / INJ
DF	Mohammad Mehdi Zare	25 January 2003	0	0	Persepolis	v.  Tanzania, 14 October 2025
DF	Mohammad Naderi	5 October 1996	3	0	Tractor	2025 CAFA Nations Cup
MF	Omid Noorafkan	9 April 1997	41	1	Sepahan	2026 FIFA World Cup PRE
MF	Hadi Habibinejad	17 October 1995	1	0	Tractor	2026 FIFA World Cup PRE
MF	Mehdi Hashemnejad	27 October 2001	7	0	Tractor	Tehran Training Camp, 19 April 2026
MF	Mohammad Mehdi Mohebi	10 February 2000	4	2	Persepolis	Tehran Training Camp, 19 April 2026
MF	Aref Haji Eydi	6 April 1999	0	0	Sepahan	Tehran Training Camp, 19 April 2026
MF	Ali Gholizadeh	10 March 1996	44	7	Lech Poznań	v.  Costa Rica, 31 March 2026
MF	Alireza Koushki	16 February 2000	2	0	Esteghlal	v.  Uzbekistan, 18 November 2025
MF	Mehdi Tikdari	12 July 1996	1	0	Persepolis	v.  Uzbekistan, 18 November 2025
MF	Mohammad Javad Hosseinnejad	26 June 2003	5	0	Dynamo Makhachkala	v.  Tanzania, 14 October 2025
MF	Mohammad Khodabandelou	7 September 1999	1	0	Persepolis	v.  Tanzania, 14 October 2025
MF	Mehran Ahmadi	26 December 1997	2	0	Esteghlal	2025 CAFA Nations Cup
FW	Kasra Taheri	6 August 2006	3	0	Sepahan	2026 FIFA World Cup PRE
FW	Amir Hossein Mahmoudi	12 July 2006	3	0	Persepolis	2026 FIFA World Cup PRE
FW	Ehsan Mahroughi	9 December 1998	0	0	Foolad	Tehran Training Camp, 19 April 2026
FW	Pouria Shahrabadi	15 June 2006	0	0	Persepolis	Tehran Training Camp, 19 April 2026
FW	Mohammad Omri	11 March 2000	0	0	Persepolis	v.  Uzbekistan, 18 November 2025
FW	Allahyar Sayyadmanesh	29 June 2001	9	1	Lech Poznań	v.  Tanzania, 14 October 2025
FW	Majid Aliyari	2 March 1996	2	2	Gol Gohar	2025 CAFA Nations Cup
INJ Withdrew due to injury PRE Preliminary squad / standby RET Retired from the national team SUS Serving suspension WD Player withdrew from the squad due to a non-injury issue.

Player records

Iran national football team

As of 26 June 2026 Statistics include official FIFA-recognised matches only. Players in bold are still active with Iran.

Most appearances

Rank	Player	Caps	Goals	Career
1	Javad Nekounam	149	38	2000–2015
2	Ali Daei	148	108	1993–2006
	Ehsan Hajsafi	148	7	2008–present
4	Ali Karimi	127	38	1998–2012
5	Jalal Hosseini	115	8	2007–2018
6	Mehdi Mahdavikia	110	13	1996–2009
7	Mehdi Taremi	108	60	2015–present
8	Karim Ansarifard	104	30	2009–2024
9	Alireza Jahanbakhsh	101	17	2013–present
	Andranik Teymourian	101	9	2005–2016

Top goalscorers

Ali Daei is the world's third all-time leading goalscorer in international matches, having scored 108 goals in 148 matches.

Rank	Player	Goals	Caps	Ratio	Career
1	Ali Daei (list)	108	148	0.73	1993–2006
2	Mehdi Taremi	60	108	0.56	2015–present
3	Sardar Azmoun	57	91	0.63	2014–2025
4	Karim Bagheri	50	87	0.57	1993–2010
5	Ali Karimi	38	127	0.3	1998–2012
	Javad Nekounam	38	149	0.26	2000–2015
7	Karim Ansarifard	30	104	0.29	2009–2024
8	Gholam Hossein Mazloumi	19	40	0.48	1969–1977
9	Farshad Pious	18	34	0.53	1984–1994
10	Reza Ghoochannejhad	17	44	0.39	2012–2018
	Alireza Jahanbakhsh	17	101	0.17	2013–present

Most capped goalkeepers

Alireza Beiranvand, goalkeeper.

Rank	Player	Caps	Career
1	Alireza Beiranvand	89	2015–present
2	Mehdi Rahmati	76	2004–2012
3	Ahmad Reza Abedzadeh	73	1987–1998
4	Ebrahim Mirzapour	70	2001–2011
5	Nasser Hejazi	62	1968–1980
6	Behzad Gholampour	27	1990–1999
7	Aziz Asli	24	1962–1968
8	Alireza Haghighi	23	2012–2018
9	Mansour Rashidi	20	1972–1985
	Parviz Boroumand		1998–2001

Captains

#	Reign	Player	Career	Total		As Captain		Tournaments
				Caps	Goals	Caps	Goals
1	1965–1967	Mohammad Ranjbar	1959–1967	23	0	9	0
2	1967–1970	Hassan Habibi	1958–1970	31	0	10	0	1968 AFC Asian Cup
3	1970–1972	Mostafa Arab	1959–1972	48	2	13	0	1972 AFC Asian Cup
4	1972–1977	Parviz Ghelichkhani	1964–1977	64	12	26	7	1976 AFC Asian Cup
5	1977–1980	Ali Parvin	1970–1980	76	13	31	2	1978 FIFA World Cup
6	1980	Nasser Hejazi	1968–1980	62	0	7	0	1980 AFC Asian Cup
7	1980–1984	Mehdi Dinvarzadeh	1977–1984	26	0	9	0
8	1984–87 1989–91	Mohammad Panjali	1978–1991	45	0	27	0	1984 AFC Asian Cup
9	1987–89 1991–93	Sirous Ghayeghran	1986–1993	43	6	22	3	1988 AFC Asian Cup 1992 AFC Asian Cup
10	1993	Hamid Derakhshan	1980–1993	41	9	12	3
11	1993–1994	Farshad Pious	1984–1994	35	19	4	1
12	1996	Mojtaba Moharrami	1988–1996	37	5	2	0	1996 AFC Asian Cup
13	1996–1998	Ahmad Reza Abedzadeh	1988–1998	73	0	38	0	1998 FIFA World Cup
14	1998–1999	Nader Mohammadkhani	1988–1999	64	4	9	1	1998 FIFA World Cup
15	1999–2000	Javad Zarincheh	1987–2000	80	1	8	0
16	2000–2006	Ali Daei	1993–2006	148	108	80	44	2000 AFC Asian Cup 2004 AFC Asian Cup 2006 FIFA World Cup
17	2006–2009	Mehdi Mahdavikia	1996–2009	111	13	17	1	2007 AFC Asian Cup
18	2009–2015	Javad Nekounam	2000–2015	149	38	56	18	2011 AFC Asian Cup 2014 FIFA World Cup 2015 AFC Asian Cup
19	2015–2016	Andranik Teymourian	2005–2016	101	9	9	1
20	2016–2019	Masoud Shojaei	2004–2019	87	8	11	0	2018 FIFA World Cup 2019 AFC Asian Cup
21	2019–2024 2026–	Ehsan Hajsafi	2008–	148	7	45	3	2022 FIFA World Cup 2023 AFC Asian Cup 2026 FIFA World Cup
22	2024–2026	Alireza Jahanbakhsh	2013–	101	17	6	0

Competitive record

FIFA World Cup

FIFA World Cup finals record											FIFA World Cup qualification record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Squad		Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1930	Not a FIFA member										No qualification
1934											Not a FIFA member
1938
1950	Did not enter										Did not enter
1954
1958
1962
1966
1970
1974	Did not qualify										8	5	1	2	9	6
1978	First group stage	14th	3	0	1	2	2	8	Squad		12	10	2	0	20	3
1982	Withdrew										Withdrew
1986	Disqualified										Disqualified
1990	Did not qualify										6	5	0	1	12	5
1994											11	5	3	3	23	13
1998	Group stage	20th	3	1	0	2	2	4	Squad		17	8	6	3	57	17
2002	Did not qualify										14	9	3	2	36	9
2006	Group stage	25th	3	0	1	2	2	6	Squad		12	9	1	2	29	7
2010	Did not qualify										14	5	8	1	15	9
2014	Group stage	28th	3	0	1	2	1	4	Squad		16	10	4	2	30	7
2018		18th	3	1	1	1	2	2	Squad		18	12	6	0	36	5
2022		26th	3	1	0	2	4	7	Squad		18	14	1	3	49	8
2026		33rd	3	0	3	0	3	3	Squad		16	11	4	1	35	12
2030	To be determined										To be determined
2034
Total	First round	7/20	21	3	7	11	16	34	—		162	103	39	20	351	101

<table><thead><tr><th colspan="2">Iran's World Cup record</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><th>First match</th><td> Netherlands 3–0 Iran  (3 June 1978; Mendoza, Argentina)</td></tr><tr><th>Biggest win</th><td> Wales 0–2 Iran  (25 November 2022; Al Rayyan, Qatar)</td></tr><tr><th>Biggest defeat</th><td> England 6–2 Iran  (21 November 2022; Al Rayyan, Qatar)</td></tr><tr><th>Fastest Goal</th><td>14th minute, Ramin Rezaeian, vs Egypt  (26 June 2026; Seattle, United States)</td></tr><tr><th>Latest goal</th><td>90+13th minute, Mehdi Taremi, vs England  (21 November 2022; Al Rayyan, Qatar)</td></tr></tbody></table>

AFC Asian Cup

AFC Asian Cup record											Qualification record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Squad		Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1956	Withdrew										Withdrew
1960	Did not qualify										6	3	1	2	12	10
1964	Withdrew										Withdrew
1968	Champions	1st	4	4	0	0	11	2	Squad	Qualified as hosts
1972	Champions	1st	5	5	0	0	12	4	Squad	Qualified as champions
1976	Champions	1st	4	4	0	0	13	0	Squad	Qualified as hosts
1980	Third place	3rd	6	3	2	1	16	6	Squad	Qualified as champions
1984	Fourth place	4th	6	2	4	0	8	3	Squad	6	6	0	0	22	2
1988	Third place	3rd	6	2	2	2	3	4	Squad	4	2	2	0	6	1
1992	Group stage	5th	3	1	1	1	2	1	Squad	2	2	0	0	10	0
1996	Third place	3rd	6	3	2	1	14	6	Squad	6	6	0	0	27	1
2000	Quarter-finals	6th	4	2	1	1	7	3	Squad	6	4	1	1	16	2
2004	Third place	3rd	6	3	3	0	14	8	Squad	6	5	0	1	16	5
2007	Quarter-finals	6th	4	2	2	0	6	3	Squad	6	4	2	0	12	2
2011	Quarter-finals	7th	4	3	0	1	6	2	Squad	6	4	1	1	11	2
2015	Quarter-finals	6th	4	3	1	0	7	3	Squad	6	5	1	0	18	5
2019	Semi-finals	3rd	6	4	1	1	12	3	Squad	8	6	2	0	26	3
2023	Semi-finals	3rd	6	4	1	1	12	7	Squad	8	6	0	2	34	4
2027	Qualified										6	4	2	0	16	4
Total	3 titles	16/19	74	45	20	9	143	55	—	76	57	12	7	226	41

<table><thead><tr><th colspan="2">Iran's AFC Asian Cup record</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><th>First match</th><td> Iran 2–0 Hong Kong  (10 May 1968; Tehran, Iran)</td></tr><tr><th>Biggest win(s)</th><td> Iran 8–0 South Yemen  (8 June 1976; Tehran, Iran)</td></tr><tr><th>Biggest defeat(s)</th><td> South Korea 3–0 Iran  (11 December 1988; Doha, Qatar) Iran 0–3 Japan  (28 January 2019; Al Ain, UAE)</td></tr><tr><th>Best result</th><td>Champions in 1968, 1972 and 1976</td></tr><tr><th>Worst result</th><td>1992 (group stage)</td></tr></tbody></table>

Olympic Games

Summer Olympics record											Qualification record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Squad		Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1900	Not an IOC member										No qualification
1904
1908
1912
1920
1924
1928
1936
1948	Did not enter
1952
1956	Withdrew										Withdrew
1960	Did not enter										Did not enter
1964	First round	12th	3	0	1	2	1	6	Squad		6	4	1	1	14	3
1968	Withdrew										Withdrew
1972	First round	12th	3	1	0	2	1	9	Squad		5	3	2	0	6	0
1976	Quarter-finals	7th	3	1	0	2	4	5	Squad		4	3	1	0	8	1
1980	Qualified but later withdrew										6	4	2	0	22	2
1984	Did not enter										Did not enter
1988	Did not qualify										2	1	0	1	2	2
1992–present	See Iran national under-23 team										See Iran national under-23 team
Total	Quarter-finals	4/17	9	2	1	6	6	20	—		23	15	6	2	52	8

Asian Games

Asian Games record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Squad
1951	Runners-up	2nd	3	2	0	1	2	1	Squad
1954	Did not enter
1958	Preliminary round	14th	2	0	0	2	0	9	Squad
1962	Did not enter
1966	Runners-up	2nd	7	4	0	3	9	6	Squad
1970	Preliminary round	8th	2	0	1	1	2	3	Squad
1974	Champions	1st	7	7	0	0	20	1	Squad
1978	Did not enter
1982	Quarter-finals	8th	4	2	0	2	3	2	Squad
1986	Quarter-finals	6th	5	3	1	1	13	2	Squad
1990	Champions	1st	5	4	1	0	7	1	Squad
1994	Preliminary round	9th	4	1	2	1	5	2	Squad
1998	Champions	1st	8	7	0	1	25	7	Squad
2002–present	See Iran national under-23 team
Total	3 titles	10/13	47	30	5	12	86	34	—

WAFF Championship

WAFF Championship record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Squad
2000	Champions	1st	5	4	1	0	7	1	Squad
2002	Third place	3rd	4	1	2	1	4	3	Squad
2004	Champions	1st	4	4	0	0	17	3	Squad
2007	Champions	1st	4	3	1	0	5	1	Squad
2008	Champions	1st	4	4	0	0	13	2	Squad
2010	Runners-up	2nd	4	2	1	1	8	5	Squad
2012	Group stage	6th	3	1	2	0	2	1	Squad
2014	Did not enter
2019–onwards	Not a WAFF member
Total	4 titles	7/8	28	19	7	2	56	16	—

CAFA Nations Cup

CAFA Nations Cup record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Squad
2023	Champions	1st	3	3	0	0	12	2	Squad
2025	Runners-up	2nd	4	2	1	1	8	4	Squad
Total	1 title	2/2	7	5	1	1	20	6	—

RCD Cup/ECO Cup

<table><thead><tr><th colspan="10">RCD Cup/ECO Cup record (Defunct)</th></tr><tr><th>Year</th><th>Round</th><th>Position</th><th>Pld</th><th>W</th><th>D</th><th>L</th><th>GF</th><th>GA</th><th>Squad</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1965</td><td>Champions</td><td>1st</td><td>2</td><td>1</td><td>1</td><td>0</td><td>4</td><td>1</td><td>Squad</td></tr><tr><td>1967</td><td>Runners-up</td><td>2nd</td><td>2</td><td>1</td><td>0</td><td>1</td><td>2</td><td>1</td><td>Squad</td></tr><tr><td>1969</td><td>Runners-up</td><td>2nd</td><td>2</td><td>1</td><td>0</td><td>1</td><td>4</td><td>6</td><td>Squad</td></tr><tr><td>1970</td><td>Champions</td><td>1st</td><td>2</td><td>1</td><td>1</td><td>0</td><td>8</td><td>1</td><td>Squad</td></tr><tr><td>1974</td><td>Runners-up</td><td>2nd</td><td>2</td><td>1</td><td>0</td><td>1</td><td>2</td><td>2</td><td>Squad</td></tr><tr><td>1993</td><td>Champions</td><td>1st</td><td>4</td><td>4</td><td>0</td><td>0</td><td>10</td><td>2</td><td>Squad</td></tr><tr><th>Total</th><th>3 titles</th><th>6/6</th><th>14</th><th>9</th><th>2</th><th>3</th><th>30</th><th>13</th><th>—</th></tr><tr><th>Only "A" matches</th><th>3 titles</th><th>6/6</th><th>11</th><th>8</th><th>1</th><th>2</th><th>27</th><th>10</th><th>—</th></tr></tbody></table>

Afro-Asian Cup of Nations

Afro-Asian Cup of Nations record (Defunct)
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Squad
1978	Not completed		1	1	0	0	3	0	Squad
1985	Did not qualify
1987
1991	Runners-up	2nd	2	1	0	1	2	2	SquadSquad
1993	Did not qualify
1995
1997
2007
Total	Runners-up	2/8	3	2	0	1	5	2	—

AFC–OFC Challenge Cup

AFC–OFC Challenge Cup record (Defunct)
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Squad
2001	Did not qualify
2003	Champions	1st	1	1	0	0	3	0	Squad
Total	1 title	1/2	1	1	0	0	3	0	—

Head-to-head record

Iran national football team

Iran national football team all opponents

The list shown below shows the Iran national football team all-time international record against opposing nations.

Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Confederation	Best win	Worst loss
Afghanistan	4	3	1	0	13	2	+11	AFC	6–1	X
Albania	1	0	0	1	0	1	−1	UEFA	X	0–1
Algeria	4	2	0	2	5	5	0	CAF	2–1	1–2
Angola	4	2	2	0	7	2	+5	CAF	4–0	X
Argentina	2	0	1	1	1	2	−1	CONMEBOL	X	0–1
Armenia	1	1	0	0	3	1	+2	UEFA	3–1	X
Australia	6	3	2	1	7	6	+1	AFC / OFC	2–0	0–3
Austria	1	0	0	1	1	5	−4	UEFA	X	1–5
Azerbaijan	3	2	1	0	4	2	+2	UEFA	2–1	X
Bahrain	18	8	5	5	32	13	+19	AFC	6–0	2–4
Bangladesh	6	6	0	0	28	1	+27	AFC	6–0	X
Belgium	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	UEFA	X	X
Belarus	3	0	2	1	3	4	−1	UEFA	X	1–2
Bolivia	1	1	0	0	2	1	+1	CONMEBOL	2–1	X
Bosnia and Herzegovina	7	5	1	1	19	10	+9	UEFA	4–0	1–3
Botswana	1	0	1	0	1	1	0	CAF	X	X
Brazil	2	1	0	1	1	3	−2	CONMEBOL	1–0	0–3
Bulgaria	2	1	1	0	2	1	+1	UEFA	1–0	X
Burkina Faso	1	1	0	0	2	1	+1	CAF	2–1	X
Cambodia	4	4	0	0	28	1	+27	AFC	14–0	X
Cameroon	2	0	2	0	1	1	0	CAF	X	X
Canada	3	2	0	1	2	1	+1	CONCACAF	1–0	0–1
Cape Verde	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	CAF	X	X
Chile	3	1	1	1	4	3	+1	CONMEBOL	2–0	1–2
China	23	13	6	4	39	18	+21	AFC	4–0	0–2
Chinese Taipei	5	5	0	0	22	0	+22	AFC	6–0	X
Costa Rica	3	2	1	0	8	2	+6	CONCACAF	5–0	X
Croatia	2	0	1	1	2	4	−2	UEFA	X	0–2
Cyprus	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	UEFA	X	X
Czech Republic	1	0	0	1	0	1	−1	UEFA	X	0–1
Denmark	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	UEFA	X	X
Ecuador	3	0	2	1	2	3	−1	CONMEBOL	X	0–1
Egypt	2	0	2	0	2	2	0	CAF	X	X
England	1	0	0	1	2	6	−4	UEFA	X	2–6
Gambia	1	1	0	0	3	1	+2	CAF	3–1	X
France	1	0	0	1	1	2	−1	UEFA	X	1–2
Georgia	1	1	0	0	2	1	+1	UEFA	2–1	X
Germany	2	0	0	2	0	4	−4	UEFA	X	0–2
Ghana	2	2	0	0	5	0	+5	CAF	3–0	X
Guam	3	3	0	0	31	0	+31	AFC	19–0	X
Guatemala	1	0	1	0	2	2	0	CONCACAF	X	X
Guinea	2	0	1	1	2	3	−1	CAF	X	1–2
Hong Kong	9	9	0	0	23	3	+20	AFC	4–0	X
Hungary	3	0	0	3	1	6	−5	UEFA	X	0–2
Iceland	1	1	0	0	1	0	+1	UEFA	1–0	X
India	9	6	1	2	20	6	+14	AFC	4–0	1–3
Indonesia	6	5	1	0	16	3	+13	AFC	5–0	X
Iraq	28	16	6	6	37	21	+16	AFC	3–0	1–2
Ireland, Republic of	3	1	0	2	2	4	−2	UEFA	1–0	0–2
Israel	5	3	1	1	7	6	+1	UEFA / AFC	3–0	0–4
Jamaica	2	2	0	0	9	1	+8	CONCACAF	8–1	X
Japan	19	7	6	6	21	22	−1	AFC	2–0	0–3
Jordan	14	7	3	4	18	11	+7	AFC	4–1	2–3
Kazakhstan	2	2	0	0	5	0	+5	UEFA / AFC	3–0	X
Kenya	3	3	0	0	6	1	+5	CAF	3–0	X
Korea, North	20	16	4	0	34	9	+25	AFC	3–0	X
Korea, South	33	13	10	10	34	36	−2	AFC	6–2	0–5
Kuwait	30	13	10	7	39	31	+8	AFC	3–1	0–3
Kyrgyzstan	6	6	0	0	25	4	+21	AFC	7–0	X
Laos	3	3	0	0	20	1	+19	AFC	7–0	X
Lebanon	12	10	1	1	31	3	+28	AFC	5–0	0–1
Libya	1	1	0	0	4	0	+4	CAF	4–0	X
Lithuania	1	1	0	0	1	0	+1	UEFA	1–0	X
Macedonia, North	3	2	1	0	7	3	+4	UEFA	3–1	X
Madagascar	1	1	0	0	1	0	+1	CAF	1–0	X
Malaysia	4	4	0	0	8	0	+8	AFC	3–0	X
Maldives	6	6	0	0	42	0	+42	AFC	17–0	X
Mali	2	1	0	1	3	2	+1	CAF	2–0	1–2
Mauritania	1	1	0	0	2	0	+2	CAF	2–0	X
Mexico	3	0	0	3	2	9	−7	CONCACAF	X	0–4
Montenegro	2	1	1	0	2	1	+1	UEFA	2–1	X
Morocco	1	1	0	0	1	0	+1	CAF	1–0	X
Mozambique	1	1	0	0	3	0	+3	CAF	3–0	X
Myanmar	5	3	0	2	7	4	+3	AFC	3–1	0–1
Nepal	5	5	0	0	25	0	+25	AFC	8–0	X
Netherlands	1	0	0	1	0	3	−3	UEFA	X	0–3
New Zealand	3	1	2	0	5	2	+3	OFC	3–0	X
Nicaragua	1	1	0	0	1	0	+1	CONCACAF	1–0	X
Nigeria	3	0	1	2	1	3	−2	CAF	X	1–2
Oman	13	7	4	2	26	15	+11	AFC	4–0	2–4
Pakistan	14	12	1	1	58	10	+48	AFC	9–1	1–4
Palestine	6	4	2	0	18	3	+15	AFC	7–0	X
Panama	2	2	0	0	3	1	+2	CONCACAF	2–1	X
Papua New Guinea	1	1	0	0	8	1	+7	OFC	8–1	X
Paraguay	1	0	1	0	1	1	0	CONMEBOL	X	X
Peru	1	0	0	1	1	4	−3	CONMEBOL	X	1–4
Philippines	1	1	0	0	7	1	+6	AFC	7–1	X
Poland	2	0	0	2	0	3	−3	UEFA	X	0–2
Portugal	3	0	1	2	1	6	−5	UEFA	X	0–3
Qatar	27	17	5	5	47	21	+26	AFC	6–1	0–2
Romania	2	0	2	0	2	2	0	UEFA	X	X
Russia	6	1	2	3	4	7	−3	UEFA	1–0	0–2
Saudi Arabia	14	4	6	4	19	13	+6	AFC	3–0	3–4
Scotland	1	0	1	0	1	1	0	UEFA	X	X
Senegal	2	0	2	0	2	2	0	CAF	X	X
Serbia	3	0	1	2	1	4	−3	UEFA	X	1–3
Sierra Leone	1	1	0	0	4	0	+4	CAF	4–0	X
Singapore	3	2	1	0	10	2	+8	AFC	6–0	X
Slovakia	2	1	0	1	6	6	0	UEFA	4–3	2–3
Spain	1	0	0	1	0	1	−1	UEFA	X	0–1
Sri Lanka	2	2	0	0	11	0	+11	AFC	7–0	X
Sweden	1	0	0	1	1	3	−2	UEFA	X	1–3
Syria	31	18	12	1	53	16	+37	AFC	7–1	0–1
Tajikistan	5	4	1	0	16	3	+13	AFC	6–1	X
Tanzania	1	1	0	0	2	0	+2	CAF	2–0	X
Thailand	14	11	3	0	32	5	+27	AFC	5–0	X
Togo	2	2	0	0	4	0	+4	CAF	2–0	X
Trinidad and Tobago	2	2	0	0	3	0	+3	CONCACAF	2–0	X
Tunisia	2	0	1	1	2	3	−1	CAF	X	0–1
Turkey	6	0	2	4	2	13	−11	UEFA	X	1–6
Turkmenistan	10	5	3	2	16	8	+8	AFC	5–0	0–1
Uganda	1	0	1	0	2	2	0	CAF	X	X
Ukraine	1	1	0	0	1	0	+1	UEFA	1–0	X
United Arab Emirates	21	17	3	1	31	5	+26	AFC	3–0	1–3
United States	3	1	1	1	3	3	0	CONCACAF	2–1	0–1
Uruguay	2	1	1	0	2	1	+1	CONMEBOL	1–0	X
Uzbekistan	18	10	6	2	20	8	+12	AFC	4–0	0–1
Venezuela	3	2	1	0	3	1	+2	CONMEBOL	1–0	X
Vietnam	1	1	0	0	2	0	+2	AFC	2–0	X
Wales	2	1	0	1	2	1	+1	UEFA	2–0	0–1
Yemen	3	3	0	0	11	1	+10	AFC	5–0	X
Yemen, South	3	3	0	0	12	0	+12	AFC	8–0	X
Zambia	1	1	0	0	3	2	+1	CAF	3–2	X
Total	627	361	149	117	1205	490	+715

• FIFA considers Russia as the inheritor of the records of Soviet Union. • FIFA considers Serbia as the inheritor of the records of SFR Yugoslavia and FR Yugoslavia. • FIFA considers Czech Republic as the inheritor of the records of Czechoslovakia.

FIFA World rankings

Iran national football team

FIFA World Rankings for Iran, August 1993 – June 2026

Between December 2014 and May 2018, Iran was the highest-ranked team in Asia, which is the longest continuous period of time that a team has held that distinction.

Highest FIFA ranking: 15 (July 2005) Lowest FIFA ranking: 122 (May 1996) Best mover: +65 (July 1996) Worst mover: –43 (October 1995)

  Best Ranking    Worst Ranking    Best Mover    Worst Mover  

<table><thead><tr><th colspan="11">Iran's FIFA World Ranking History</th></tr><tr><th rowspan="2">Rank</th><th rowspan="2">Year</th><th rowspan="2">Games Played</th><th rowspan="2">Won</th><th rowspan="2">Drawn</th><th rowspan="2">Lost</th><th colspan="2">Best</th><th colspan="2">Worst</th></tr><tr><th>Rank</th><th>Move</th><th>Rank</th><th>Move</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>24</td><td>2022</td><td>11</td><td>6</td><td>1</td><td>4</td><td>20</td><td>2</td><td>24</td><td>4</td></tr><tr><td>21</td><td>2021</td><td>11</td><td>10</td><td>1</td><td>0</td><td>21</td><td>5</td><td>31</td><td>2</td></tr><tr><td>29</td><td>2020</td><td>2</td><td>2</td><td>0</td><td>0</td><td>29</td><td>3</td><td>33</td><td>0</td></tr><tr><td>33</td><td>2019</td><td>12</td><td>7</td><td>2</td><td>3</td><td>20</td><td>7</td><td>33</td><td>6</td></tr><tr><td>29</td><td>2018</td><td>15</td><td>9</td><td>3</td><td>3</td><td>28</td><td>5</td><td>37</td><td>3</td></tr><tr><td>32</td><td>2017</td><td>11</td><td>7</td><td>3</td><td>1</td><td>23</td><td>7</td><td>43</td><td>9</td></tr><tr><td>29</td><td>2016</td><td>10</td><td>8</td><td>2</td><td>0</td><td>27</td><td>10</td><td>44</td><td>3</td></tr><tr><td>45</td><td>2015</td><td>15</td><td>10</td><td>4</td><td>1</td><td>38</td><td>10</td><td>51</td><td>4</td></tr><tr><td>51</td><td>2014</td><td>10</td><td>3</td><td>4</td><td>3</td><td>34</td><td>5</td><td>56</td><td>7</td></tr><tr><td>33</td><td>2013</td><td>9</td><td>7</td><td>1</td><td>1</td><td>33</td><td>15</td><td>67</td><td>10</td></tr><tr><td>59</td><td>2012</td><td>14</td><td>4</td><td>7</td><td>3</td><td>44</td><td>14</td><td>59</td><td>15</td></tr><tr><td>45</td><td>2011</td><td>15</td><td>12</td><td>2</td><td>1</td><td>42</td><td>21</td><td>65</td><td>4</td></tr><tr><td>66</td><td>2010</td><td>12</td><td>8</td><td>2</td><td>2</td><td>57</td><td>8</td><td>67</td><td>4</td></tr><tr><td>64</td><td>2009</td><td>21</td><td>7</td><td>8</td><td>6</td><td>42</td><td>2</td><td>64</td><td>11</td></tr><tr><td>43</td><td>2008</td><td>21</td><td>12</td><td>7</td><td>2</td><td>37</td><td>11</td><td>51</td><td>10</td></tr><tr><td>41</td><td>2007</td><td>13</td><td>8</td><td>4</td><td>1</td><td>32</td><td>5</td><td>47</td><td>8</td></tr><tr><td>38</td><td>2006</td><td>15</td><td>8</td><td>5</td><td>2</td><td>19</td><td>5</td><td>47</td><td>24</td></tr><tr><td>19</td><td>2005</td><td>11</td><td>8</td><td>1</td><td>2</td><td>15</td><td>2</td><td>21</td><td>3</td></tr><tr><td>20</td><td>2004</td><td>18</td><td>13</td><td>3</td><td>2</td><td>17</td><td>7</td><td>31</td><td>3</td></tr><tr><td>28</td><td>2003</td><td>11</td><td>6</td><td>1</td><td>4</td><td>28</td><td>7</td><td>47</td><td>7</td></tr><tr><td>33</td><td>2002</td><td>10</td><td>4</td><td>4</td><td>2</td><td>29</td><td>2</td><td>34</td><td>3</td></tr><tr><td>29</td><td>2001</td><td>20</td><td>11</td><td>4</td><td>5</td><td>29</td><td>8</td><td>51</td><td>7</td></tr><tr><td>37</td><td>2000</td><td>26</td><td>15</td><td>7</td><td>4</td><td>37</td><td>7</td><td>53</td><td>6</td></tr><tr><td>49</td><td>1999</td><td>6</td><td>2</td><td>4</td><td>0</td><td>44</td><td>3</td><td>51</td><td>20</td></tr><tr><td>27</td><td>1998</td><td>18</td><td>9</td><td>2</td><td>7</td><td>27</td><td>17</td><td>47</td><td>6</td></tr><tr><td>46</td><td>1997</td><td>22</td><td>11</td><td>7</td><td>4</td><td>46</td><td>17</td><td>87</td><td>6</td></tr><tr><td>83</td><td>1996</td><td>21</td><td>13</td><td>5</td><td>3</td><td>57</td><td>65</td><td>122</td><td>7</td></tr><tr><td>108</td><td>1995</td><td>0</td><td>0</td><td>0</td><td>0</td><td>63</td><td>26</td><td>108</td><td>43</td></tr><tr><td>75</td><td>1994</td><td>4</td><td>1</td><td>2</td><td>1</td><td>57</td><td>2</td><td>75</td><td>9</td></tr><tr><td>59</td><td>1993</td><td>15</td><td>9</td><td>3</td><td>3</td><td>54</td><td>7</td><td>59</td><td>4</td></tr></tbody></table>

Honours

Intercontinental

• Afro-Asian Cup of Nations • Runners-up (1): (/wiki/1991Afro-AsianCupofNations) • AFC–OFC Challenge Cup • Champions (1): (/wiki/2003AFC–OFCChallengeCup)

Continental

• AFC Asian Cup • Champions (3): (/wiki/1968AFCAsianCup), (/wiki/1972AFCAsianCup), (/wiki/1976AFCAsianCup) • Third place (6): (/wiki/1980AFCAsianCup), (/wiki/1988AFCAsianCup), (/wiki/1996AFCAsianCup), (/wiki/2004AFCAsianCup), (/wiki/2019AFCAsianCup), (/wiki/2023AFCAsianCup) • Asian Games1 • Gold medal (3): (/wiki/Footballatthe1974AsianGames), (/wiki/Footballatthe1990AsianGames), (/wiki/Footballatthe1998AsianGames) • Silver medal (2): (/wiki/Footballatthe1951AsianGames), (/wiki/Footballatthe1966AsianGames)

Regional

• WAFF Championship • Champions (4): (/wiki/WestAsianFootballFederationChampionship2000), (/wiki/WestAsianFootballFederationChampionship2004), (/wiki/WestAsianFootballFederationChampionship2007), (/wiki/WestAsianFootballFederationChampionship2008) • Runners-up (1): (/wiki/2010WestAsianFootballFederationChampionship) • Third place (1): (/wiki/2002WestAsianFootballFederationChampionship) • CAFA Nations Cup • Champions (1): (/wiki/2023CAFANationsCup) • Runners-up (1): (/wiki/2025CAFANationsCup) • West Asian Games • Gold medal (1): (/wiki/Footballatthe1997WestAsianGames) • Runners-up (1): (/wiki/Footballatthe2002WestAsianGames) • Third place (1): (/wiki/Footballatthe2005WestAsianGames)

Friendly

• ECO Cup • Winners: (/wiki/1965RCDCup), (/wiki/1970RCDCup), (/wiki/1993ECOCup) • Runners-up: (/wiki/1967RCDCup), (/wiki/1969RCDCup), (/wiki/1974RCDCup) • LG Cup • Winners: (/wiki/2001LGCup(Iran)), 2002 (Morocco), 2002 (Iran) • Third place: (/wiki/2000LGCup(Iran)) • Quaid-e-Azam International Tournament • Winners: (/wiki/1982Quaid-e-AzamInternationalTournament) • Iran Friendship Cup • Runners-up: (/wiki/1969FriendshipCup) • Cyrus International Tournament • Winners: 1971 • Iran International Tournament • Winners: 1974 • Fajr International Tournament • Runners-up: 1986 • Lunar New Year Cup • Runners-up: (/wiki/2003LunarNewYearCup) • Third place: (/wiki/1998LunarNewYearCup) • Ciao February Cup • Runners-up: 1999 • Canada Cup • Runners-up: (/wiki/1999CanadaCup) • Civilization Cup • Third place: 2001 • Tehran Cup • Third place: 2005 • Oman Cup • Third place: 2008 • Al Ain International Cup • Runners-up: 2025

Awards

• AFC Asian Cup Fair Play Award: 1996

Summary

Only official honours are included, according to FIFA statutes (competitions organized/recognized by FIFA or an affiliated confederation).

Competition				Total
AFC Asian Cup	3	0	6	9
Afro-Asian Cup of Nations	0	1	0	1
AFC–OFC Challenge Cup	1	0	0	1
Total	4	1	6	11

• Competition organized by OCA, officially not recognized by FIFA.