FIFA World Cup 2026, Iran vs New Zealand live score: Iran arrived on US soil on Sunday from their training base in Tijuana.FIFA World Cup 2026 Today Match Live Score Updates: Just a day after the USA and Iran reached a tentative agreement to end the war in Iran and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the Iranian football team will be on US soil to play their FIFA World Cup opener against New Zealand at the Los Angeles Stadium in a Group G opening clash.Unlike the rest of the 47 teams, The Iranians have not had the best of the build-up to the FIFA World Cup. Iran captain Mehdi Taremi complained before the game that his team had a challenging experience due to multiple disruptions created by their nation’s war with the US, the tournament’s co-host. The Iranians only managed to arrive in Los Angeles on Sunday from their training base in Tijuana, Mexico — about 140 miles (225 kilometers) from the stadium where they will open group-stage play against New Zealand. Iran initially planned to train in Tucson, Arizona. But then USA and Israel attacked Iran on February 28, killing its Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in the initial missile strikes. After the war, Iran planned to move base to Baja California. FIFA then rejected Iran’s desire to play its group-stage World Cup matches outside the U.S., claiming logistics and contracts wouldn’t allow it.Story continues below this adThis is the Iran and New Zealand’s first meeting at a FIFA World Cup. Both sailed through qualification stage, with Iran losing only one game in a 16-match event while New Zealand reached a third finals on the back of a flawless campaign in Oceania.Scroll down to read updates from the FIFA World Cup 2026 game between Iran and New Zealand.Live UpdatesJun 16, 2026 04:00 AM ISTFIFA World Cup 2026, Iran vs New Zealand Live: Iran's affected prepIran captain Mehdi Taremi says his team is having a challenging World Cup experience.“I have felt the tension from the first moment we arrived at this World Cup,” Taremi said through an interpreter. “At any tournament when there is tension, we won’t have the same beautiful experience we always talk about with peace and joy. ... I know it wasn’t just us. I know several countries had visa problems and changes with training camps. Before we arrived, the feeling, the sensation people always have, how they look forward to the World Cup, I think this time maybe they haven’t had the same feeling.”Jun 16, 2026 03:50 AM ISTFIFA World Cup 2026, Iran vs New Zealand Live: Focus on IranIran are competing in their seventh FIFA World Cup. But in the past six appearances, they have never reached the knockout stage. Iran are three-time continental champions from Asia.They barged into this edition of the FIFA World Cup, losing only one game in a 16-match qualification eventJun 16, 2026 03:44 AM ISTFIFA World Cup 2026, Iran vs New Zealand Live: Iran's problemsIran have had major roadblocks in their participation at the FIFA World Cup. The biggest one of those is the USA, who are one of the co-hosts of the FIFA World Cup, attacking Iran and killing their Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in missile strikes four months ago.USA and Iran have been at war since those strikes.The Iranians only arrived in Los Angeles, for the game against New Zealand, on Sunday from their training base in Tijuana, Mexico — about 140 miles (225 kilometers) from the stadium.Iran initially planned to train in Tucson, Arizona. But then USA and Israel attacked Iran on February 28, killing its Supreme Leader. After the war began, Iran planned to move base to Baja California before finally settling for Mexico.FIFA has rejected Iran’s desire to play its group-stage World Cup matches outside the U.S., claiming logistics and contracts wouldn’t allow it.The Iranian team is limited to brief trips into the U.S. for its matches, flying in the day before the game and reportedly flying out immediately afterward. Iran plays in Inglewood, California, again next Sunday against Belgium, before completing the group stage in Seattle against Egypt on June 26.Iran has been beset with logistical problems since then, including the denial of visas for certain members of its delegation. A team spokesperson said Sunday that two members of its media relations group were denied U.S. visas for the opening match. Iran and its traveling fans also have faced multiple issues with match tickets.(With inputs from The Associated Press)Jun 16, 2026 03:38 AM ISTFIFA World Cup 2026 live: Saudi Arabia vs Uruguay kicks offAs we wait for the Iran vs New Zealand game to kick off in Inglewood, we have had a kickoff in Miami in the game between Saudi Arabia and Uruguay!Considering Cabo Verde's gritty draw earlier in the day against heavyweights Spain, a win today for either team will propel them to the top of the standings in Group H.Jun 16, 2026 03:34 AM ISTHOLAHello and welcome to our live coverage of the Iran vs New Zealand football game from Group G. It promises to be an emotion-charged game for at least one team, the Iran side, who have had their fair share of issues getting to USA.Iran fans wave as players arrive in Tijuana, Mexico, for the World Cup. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)Los Angeles has another name. Iranians call it Tehrangeles, home to the largest concentration of Iranians outside Iran itself. On Monday evening, it stages a football match unlike any in World Cup history: involving a country engaged in a military conflict with the host nation until a day before the game. Iran face New Zealand on Monday while a peace deal between Iran and USA was agreed on Sunday.The deal notwithstanding, Iranian players will cross over into the US from their base in Mexico’s Tijuana the day before their games, play the match, and return to Mexico the same night. These are the logistics of war, in a tournament built for peace.“I’ve been to three World Cups and they always say, once you get off the plane and enter the host country, there’s just a unique atmosphere of friendliness and globalness,” striker Mehdi Taremi, who will play in his third World Cup, said from Tijuana last week. “Unfortunately, I’m not feeling it right now. There’s a lot of tension. You feel it in the atmosphere.”READ MORE© IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd