United States Homeland Security chief Markwayne Mullin disclosed he performed a “happy dance” and even “sang a song or two” following Iran’s elimination from the World Cup, expressing satisfaction about revoking Iranian players’ visas.
Iran barely fell short of advancing to the knockout stages, finishing behind its opponents on goal difference after a stoppage-time winner against Egypt was disallowed for a marginal offside decision.
Addressing journalists during a World Cup briefing at the government’s Special Event Coordination Center on Monday, Mullin disclosed that he celebrated Iran’s departure from the competition.
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“I’m just glad they’re done, and they’re not coming back,” he said to reporters. “I was so happy when we were able to pull their visas and said they could leave the U.S. soil, and I might’ve sung a song or two or maybe even danced a happy dance.”
Mullin also stated that he was “very happy they’re going back,” noting that “there wasn’t a single team that we dealt with more than them” during the competition.
His comments represent the latest development in an ongoing clash with the Iranian delegation. Earlier in the World Cup, Mullin claimed that members of Iran’s traveling party had tried to bring in an individual with direct connections to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which the United States classifies as a terrorist organization.
The allegation was promptly dismissed by the Iran Football Federation (FFIRI), with an official characterizing the claim as “false, fabricated and entirely baseless.
“Iranians are used to the mistreatment and lies of U.S. officials, so no one in Iran is surprised by these hostile remarks,” an FFIRI official, reacting to Mullin’s new public comments, said in a statement to The Athletic.
“The fact that he openly celebrates Iran’s elimination says far more about him than it does about our team. It reflects a level of pettiness that cannot even tolerate the presence of a football team competing on the world’s biggest stage.
“After our match against New Zealand, our head coach said that the United States did not want Iran to remain in this tournament because of the inhumane and unprofessional treatment our team experienced. These latest comments only reinforce that belief.”
Iran head coach Amir Ghalenoei asserted that his side had been the “most oppressed” team at the World Cup, pointing to the obstacles they encountered amid escalating tensions involving Iran, the United States and Israel.
Prior to the tournament’s start, Iran’s training facility was shifted from Arizona to Tijuana, Mexico, with the squad operating under stringent travel limitations throughout the event.
For their first two fixtures, players and staff were permitted to enter the United States only the day before kickoff and were obligated to depart immediately following each contest under their visa terms.
While those limitations were eased for Iran’s final group-stage fixture in Seattle, permitting the squad to arrive two days in advance, they were still obligated to return to Tijuana after Saturday’s match.
Ghalenoei criticized the United States, which is co-hosting the World Cup with Canada and Mexico, of treating his squad unjustly. He maintained that the travel logistics left Iran with “less than half” of the preparation time required to train adequately and recover between fixtures.
Team captain Mehdi Taremi reinforced those concerns, saying: “This kind of tension undermines the joy of the World Cup. I felt the tension from the first moment we arrived.”
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