Iran has decided not to participate in the 2026 FIFA World Cup draw ceremony on December 5 in Washington, after the United States refused to issue visas to several members of its delegation, the Iranian federation announced on Friday.

The United States, which has had no diplomatic relations with Iran for four decades, will be one of the co-hosts of the 2026 World Cup along with Canada and Mexico. Most of the matches, including the final, will be played on American soil.

Iran qualified in March for the 2026 World Cup, and finds itself in pot 2 of the draw according to FIFA's rules.

The Iranian sports website Varzesh 3 reported on Tuesday that the United States had not issued visas to some members of the Iranian delegation, including Mehdi Taj, president of the Football Federation.

"We have informed FIFA that the decisions taken are unrelated to sport and that the members of the Iranian delegation will not participate in the World Cup draw," the spokesman for the country's football federation announced on state television.

According to Varzesh 3, four members of the delegation, including the national team coach, Amir Ghalenoei, have received their visas to travel to the United States.

On Thursday evening, the federation's president, Mr. Taj, denounced a "political" decision by the United States, the Mehr agency reported.

"We told FIFA boss Mr. (Gianni) Infantino that this was a purely political position and asked him to stop this behavior," he added.

Iran and the United States, enemies for more than four decades, began negotiations in April under the mediation of the Sultanate of Oman regarding Iran's controversial nuclear program.

But these discussions have been at a standstill since Israel's surprise attack on Iran on June 13, which triggered a 12-day conflict between the two countries, during which the United States also struck three major Iranian nuclear sites.