Iran's soccer federation said that its ticket allocation for the World Cup was withdrawn, leaving the team's supporters unable to attend matches.
The Iranian federation released a statement saying that although it had already started the ticket sales process, it no longer could provide them, Reuters reported.
"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 said in a statement to the outlet.
"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," the statement to Reuters concluded.
Eeach World Cup participating country is supposed to receive a 8 percent of their tickets for each of their matches.
The ticket controversy is the latest issue that has arisen regarding Iran's participation in the World Cup. The U.S. is the primary host of the World Cup, and the ongoing war between the U.S. and Israel and the country has created tensions.
The U.S. previously refused to host the Iranian team in its territory. That forced the team, which is scheduled to play matches in Inglewood, California, this month against New Zealand, Belgium, and against Egypt in Seattle, to stay in Mexico.
The team had originally planned to stay in Tucson, Arizona, but that changed after President Trump expressed concerns on Truth Social: "The Iran National Soccer Team is welcome to The World Cup, but I really don't believe it is appropriate that they be there, for their own life and safety. Thank you for your attention to this matter! President DONALD J. TRUMP," the President wrote back then..
Another flap occurred earlier this week when numerous administrative and managerial staff were denied visas to come to the U.S., ESPN reported. According to the network, 14 individuals were denied visas including Iran Football Federation's secretary-general, Hedayat Mombeini, and its vice president, Mehdi Mohammad Nabi.
According to Reuters, the U.S. did not give visas to all of the Iranian players until 10 days before their first scheduled match on June 15. U.S. officials told Reuters that all personnel necessary for Iran to play had been given visas.
The World Cup begins on Thursday, and Iran will play its first games in Los Angeles on June 15 and against Belgium on June 21. It then is scheduled to face Egypt in Seattle on June 26.
