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Iran’s football federation has responded to a senior US official celebrating their exit from the World Cup by accusing the co-hosts of peddling “lies”, saying they are “used to mistreatment”.

On Monday, the US homeland security secretary, Markwayne Mullin said he performed a “happy dance” and “sung a song or two” after Iran failed to qualify for the last 32.

Mullin, speaking at a briefing at the government’s special event coordination centre in Washington, said: “I’m just glad they’re [Iran] done, and they’re not coming back.

“I was so happy when we were able to pull their visas and said they could leave the US soil, and I might’ve sung a song or two or maybe even danced a happy dance. I’m very happy they’re going back because there wasn’t a single team that we dealt with more than them.”

Iran’s head coach, Amir Ghalenoei, argued his team were the “most oppressed” at the tournament in his first press conference and, after their final Group G match in Seattle, Iran’s captain, Mehdi Taremi, intimated the US would rather Iran not advance to the knockout stage.

“We have to fight against everything here,” Taremi said after last Friday’s draw against Egypt. “I don’t know if people want it or not, but as we see it by our perspective, yeah, they are like that I think.”
Ghalenoei said on numerous occasions that the treatment of his staff and players was unfair. Eleven of Iran’s wider team, including the Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran (FFIRI) president, Mehdi Taj, were denied visas by the US authorities.

They were also angry about their travel arrangements imposed by the US. On the eve of the tournament they were forced to move their training base, relocating from Arizona to Tijuana, Mexico.

Responding to Mullin’s comments, a spokesperson for the FFIRI said: “Iranians are used to the mistreatment and lies of US officials, so no one in Iran is surprised by these hostile remarks. These remarks once again demonstrate that US officials have no commitment to international law or the principles expected of a host nation capable of organising a global sporting event.

“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 left a handwritten note in Tijuana to thank locals for the warm hospitality and also make their feelings clear on the US. “You showed us that hosting a Fifa World Cup is about far more than stadiums and tickets,” it read. “True hosting is about respect, humanity, and dignity. We leave this World Cup with pride, but also with one fundamental question: Did every team truly compete under equal conditions and equal professional standards?”