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US Has No Plan to Exclude Iran From World Cup — Rubio
Marco Rubio denies claims that the US plans to block Iran’s participation in the World Cup, saying players are not the issue.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has denied that the United States is seeking to exclude Iran from the World Cup, after controversy emerged over a suggestion that Italy could replace the Iranian team.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Rubio said Washington had made no move to bar Iran’s players from the tournament, which is being hosted jointly by the United States.
“The problem with Iran, it would be not their athletes. It would be some of the other people that we want to bring with them,” he said.
The clarification follows remarks from an official who speculated about replacing Iran with Italy, despite Italy failing to qualify for the competition.
Rubio’s comments aimed to dispel concerns that the US government was interfering with Iran’s participation in the tournament.
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