For a brief minute, Iran were in dreamland when they put the ball in the back of the net against Egypt in the 93rd minute. But a VAR check cut their epic celebrations short and ruled the goal out for offside. As their group stage campaign ended with a 1-1 draw, Iran continued their tradition of leaving locker room notes. Thanking the Seattle crowd for backing them, they expressed their pride in the team’s fighting spirit.

“Perhaps points can be won in many ways. Perhaps a team can advance from a group, but only through fairness and honor can one stand tall before history. FairPlay is not a line in football’s rules; it is the soul of the game. Thank you, Seattle, for your hospitality, and thank you to all Iranians, who gave their hearts, voices, and their whole being for Iran,” a part of their note read.

Iran flew in from their practise base in Tijuana, Mexico, to Seattle a day before their game. As soon as the game ended, they traveled back to Tijuana. But before leaving, they left a note in their locker room.

Iran left a similar note in Los Angeles after they played two games at the venue.

“We came to Los Angeles with pride, competed with honor, and left with dignity. Thank you, Los Angeles, for your hospitality. And thank you to every Iranian who gave their heart, voice, and soul for Iran throughout these 180 minutes,” their note at the locker room in Los Angeles read.

When Sky Sports’ Yalda Hakim asked Andrew Giuliani, the Executive Director of the White House FIFA World Cup Task Force shared how delightful they were to host Iran amid the challenging geopolitical tensions.

“We’re very honored to be able to facilitate an even playing field for this team at the FIFA World Cup,” he stated.

The Iranian soccer team gave their all on the pitch, but they have an anxious 24-hour wait to discover their fate at the World Cup.

Was this the last of Iran at the FIFA World Cup 2026?

Having participated in seven World Cups so far, Iran has never made it out of the group stages. They won just a single game in the group stages in 1998, 2018, and 2022. However, despite not winning a single game this time, they could still make it to the knockouts for the first time in history.

Needing a victory against Egypt to confirm the knockout berth, Iran started fighting from behind very early in the game. A goal from Mahmoud Saber put Egypt ahead in the fifth minute. Iran’s influential captain Mehdi Taremi missed a penalty in the 11th minute, but Iran equalized in the 14th minute through Ramin Rezaeian. Despite plenty of attempts, there were no goals in the game.

But chaos ensued in the Egypt box in the 93rd minute as Iran’s Shoja Khalilzadeh reacted the fastest to fire it home. He even got a yellow card for excessive celebration. But a VAR check showed he was offside by a fraction of his boot. The Iranian players could barely believe what happened.

With three points to their name, Iran sit third in Group G behind Belgium and Egypt. Thanks to the 48-team expanded World Cup, the eight best third-placed teams can also make it to the round of 32.

Although they sit 4th on that list, the final day of group stage games could see that change. They will be eagerly watching the games on Saturday with the hope of punching their ticket to the knockout.