Defiant meaning behind Iran’s World Cup team wearing numbered pins
Iran’s World Cup team arrived in Mexico over the weekend wearing lapel pins however some football fans may not know their significance.
The gold-coloured pins, worn by players on the jackets of players who arrived in Tijuana, Mexico on Sunday (7 June) bore the number 168.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be held across North America - Canada, the United States, and Mexico - from 11 June to 19 July. Iran’s first match will be against New Zealand on 15 June in Los Angeles.
Before the game next week, the Iranian team travelled to Mexico following a late change of plans two weeks ago to use Mexico as a training base instead of Tucson, Arizona.
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Upon the Iranian delegation’s arrival, spectators noticed the pins on their jackets.
The number ‘168’ is not random. It is a gesture referring to the victims, predominately children, who were killed in a strike on a school in Minab, southern Iran on 28 February. This attack has been widely attributed to the US.
Iran’s embassy in Hungary acknowledged the pins in a social media post on Monday, specifically mentioning Minab.
The strike on the school, which was located near a Revolutionary Guard base, had previously been commemorated by the Iranian national team before a warm-up match in March in Antalya, Turkey. During the ceremony, the players held up pink and purple school backpacks as the national anthem played in tribute to the victims.
Neither the United States nor Israel has taken responsibility for the attack. The US military is currently investigating the incident and has said it does not deliberately target civilians.
Their preparations for three group-stage games in the United States have been disrupted by delays in visa processing by American authorities, with some delegation members reportedly denied entry due to alleged links to the Revolutionary Guard.
The team’s entry into the United States remains uncertain ahead of their June 15 opening match against New Zealand in Inglewood, near Los Angeles.
Between fixtures, they are scheduled to travel back to Tijuana, before facing Belgium on 21 June in Inglewood and Egypt on 26 June in Seattle.
If both teams finish second in their groups, Iran and the United States could potentially meet in the round of 32 on July 3 at the Dallas Cowboys’ stadium in Arlington, Texas.
Meanwhile, Iran’s football federation said on Tuesday that its ticket allocation had been withdrawn just days before the World Cup begins, leaving fans who had already arranged travel unable to attend matches.
In a statement, the Iranian federation FFIRI said it had already begun the ticket sales process but could no longer provide tickets to supporters. “This is despite the fact that many Iranian football fans, relying on the officially announced process, had already made the necessary plans to attend the matches,” the FFIRI added in a statement.
“Depriving Iranian supporters of access to their lawful and official allocation of tickets is an action contrary to the spirit governing international competitions and the principle of equality among participating countries.
“This development raises serious questions about the interference of non-sporting and political considerations in the organization of the world's biggest football event.”
Greg Harris