Iran
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)
AssociationFootball Federation Islamic Republic of Iran
ConfederationAFC (Asia)
Sub-confederationCAFA (Central Asia)
Head coachAmir Ghalenoei
CaptainEhsan Hajsafi
Most capsJavad Nekounam (149)[lower-alpha 1]
Top scorerAli Daei (108)[lower-alpha 2]
Home stadiumAzadi Stadium
FIFA codeIRN
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 21 Steady (21 December 2023)[3]
Highest15 (August 2005[4])
Lowest122 (May 1996[5])
First international
 Afghanistan 0–0 Iran 
(Kabul, Afghanistan; 25 August 1941)
Biggest win
 Iran 19–0 Guam 
(Tabriz, Iran; 24 November 2000)[6]
Biggest defeat
 Turkey 6–1 Iran 
(Istanbul, Turkey; 28 May 1950)[7]
 South Korea 5–0 Iran 
(Tokyo, Japan; 28 May 1958)[8]
World Cup
Appearances6 (first in 1978)
Best resultGroup stage (1978), (1998), (2006), (2014), (2018), (2022)
Asian Cup
Appearances15 (first in 1968)
Best resultChampions (1968, 1972, 1976)
Olympic Games
Appearances3_(4) (first in 1964)
Best resultQuarter-finals (1976)
WAFF Championship
Appearances7 (first in 2000)
Best resultChampions (2000, 2004, 2007, 2004)
Asian Games
Appearances10 (first in 1951)
Best resultChampions (1974, 1990, 1998, 2002)
Medal record
Men's football
AFC Asian Cup
Gold medal – first place1968 IranTeam
Gold medal – first place1972 ThailandTeam
Gold medal – first place1976 IranTeam
Bronze medal – third place1980 KuwaitTeam
Bronze medal – third place1988 QatarTeam
Bronze medal – third place1996 UAETeam
Bronze medal – third place2004 ChinaTeam
Asian Games
Gold medal – first place1974 TehranTeam
Gold medal – first place1990 BeijingTeam
Gold medal – first place1998 BangkokTeam
Silver medal – second place1951 New DelhiTeam
Silver medal – second place1966 BangkokTeam
WAFF Championship
Gold medal – first place2000 JordanTeam
Gold medal – first place2004 IranTeam
Gold medal – first place2007 JordanTeam
Gold medal – first place2008 IranTeam
Silver medal – second place2010 JordanTeam
Bronze medal – third place2002 SyriaTeam
CAFA Nations Cup
Gold medal – first place2023 Kyrgyzstan/UzbekistanTeam
Afro-Asian Cup of Nations
Silver medal – second place1991 Algeria/IranTeam
AFC–OFC Challenge Cup
Gold medal – first place2003 IranTeam

The Iran national football team (Persian: تیم ملی فوتبال مردان ایران, romanized: Team Mellie Futbâle Mardâne Irân), recognised by FIFA as IR Iran,[9] represents Iran in international football and is controlled by the Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran (FFIRI).

At the continental level, Iran has won three Asian Cup championships in 1968, 1972 and 1976. The nation's best performance at the Olympics was reaching the quarterfinals at the 1976 Montreal Games. At the FIFA World Cup, Iran have qualified six times (1978, 1998, 2006, 2014, 2018 and 2022) but have never progressed beyond the group stages; they have however, won three matches: against the United States in 1998, Morocco in 2018 and Wales in 2022.

History

Early years

The very first Iran football team that traveled to Baku in 1926

The Iranian Football Federation was founded in 1920.[10] In 1926, Tehran XI (selected players from Tehran Club, Toofan F.C. and Armenian Sports Club) traveled across the border to Baku, USSR, this was the first away football match for an Iranian team. This Tehran Select team is the predecessor of Iran's national football team.

The first match that Team Melli played was on 23 August 1941, away at Kabul in a 1–0 win against British India while Iran's first FIFA international match was on 25 August 1941, away at Afghanistan.[7] Iran won the Asian Cup three consecutive times (1968, 1972, 1976) to which the team has not been able to add since.

Dunai and Ghelichkhani at the 1972 Summer Olympics
Iran playing in the 1978 World Cup against Scotland in Cordoba, Argentina

In 1978, Iran made its first appearance in the World Cup after defeating Australia in Tehran. Iran lost two of three group stage matches against the Netherlands and Peru.[11] Team Melli managed to surprise some in the footballing community[12] by securing one point in its first ever World Cup appearance against Scotland which saw Iraj Danaeifard cancel out an own goal scored by Andranik Eskandarian for the 1–1 draw.[13]

After the Iranian Revolution

After the Iranian Revolution, football was somewhat neglected. During the 1980s, the Iranian national team did not feature in World Cup competitions due to the Iran–Iraq War (1980–88) and domestic football embraced the inevitable effects of conflict. The national team withdrew from the Asian qualifiers for the 1982 World Cup and refused to participate in the qualifiers for the 1986 World Cup because of having to play on neutral ground. The war and political upheavals left Iran without major club competitions until 1989 when the Qods League was established. A year later, the Qods League was renamed the Azadegan League. Despite failing to qualify for both the 1990 and 1994 World Cups, it was said that during this period, a number of quality players burst onto the Iranian football scene laying the foundation for third place in the 1996 AFC Asian Cup (victories in that tournament included a 3–0 victory against Saudi Arabia and a 6–2 victory against South Korea) and their second stab at World Cup glory in 1998.[14]

1998–2006

In November 1997, Iran qualified for the 1998 World Cup after eliminating Australia in a close playoff series. After being tied 3–3 on aggregate, Iran advanced due to the away goals rule; Iran held Australia to a 1–1 draw at home, and a 2–2 draw in Melbourne.[15]

At their first game at the 1998 FIFA World Cup against Yugoslavia, Iran lost 1–0 to a free kick by Siniša Mihajlović.[14] Iran recorded their first World Cup victory in the second game[13] beating and eliminating the United States 2–1 with Hamid Estili and Mehdi Mahdavikia scoring goals for Iran. The Iran-US World Cup match was preheated with certain excitement because of each country's political stance after the Iranian revolution and the Iran hostage crisis. However, in an act of defiance against all forms of hatred or politics in sports, both sides presented one another with gifts and flowers and took ceremonial pictures before the match kickoff.[16]

Iran played against Germany in the third game, losing 2–0 courtesy of goals from Oliver Bierhoff and Jürgen Klinsmann, finishing third in the group.[17]

Iran finished first in the group stage of the 2000 Asia Cup but lost to South Korea in the quarter-finals. They failed to qualify for World Cup 2002, held in Asia for the first time, after an aggregate defeat to the Republic of Ireland, losing 2–0 in Dublin and winning 1–0 in Tehran. The elimination saw manager Miroslav Blažević step down from the top spot to be replaced by his assistant Branko Ivanković who stepped up from assistant coach.

After qualifying to the Asian Cup 2004, Iran was drawn with Thailand, Oman and Japan in the tournament. Iran finished second in the group. In the quarter-final clash against South Korea, Iran won 4–3. They then lost to host China on penalty kicks, and won against Bahrain 4–2 to finish third place in the tournament.

Iran score against Angola during a 2006 FIFA World Cup match.

On 8 June 2005, Iran and Japan became the first countries other than hosts Germany to qualify for the 2006 World Cup.

The Iran-Japan leg of the 2006 World Cup qualifiers in Tehran, played on 24 March 2005, was the highest attended qualifying match among all confederations. The match ended with five fans dead and several others injured as they left the Azadi Stadium at the end of the match.[18]

Iran started their Germany 2006 appearance with a match against North America's Mexico in Group D. Being 1–1 at half-time, defensive mistakes led to a Mexican 3–1 win, with goals from Omar Bravo and Sinha. Yahya Golmohammadi scored the only Iranian goal.

Iran played against Portugal in the second game, losing 2–0. The goals were scored by Deco and a penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo. Iran were eliminated from the competition before their third and final game against Angola, a 1–1 draw.

Temporary suspension

In November 2006, Iran was suspended by FIFA from all participation in international football on the grounds of governmental interference in the national football association.[19] The ban lasted less than a month[20] and as a dispensation was given to allow the Iran under-23 team to participate in the football competition of the 2006 Asian Games,[21] fixtures were unaffected.

2007–14

The IRIFF appointed Amir Ghalenoei as manager of Iran on 17 July 2006 to succeed Branko Ivanković. After finishing first in the 2007 Asian Cup qualifying round two points ahead of South Korea, Iran placed first in the group stage of the final tournament in Malaysia, eventually losing to their qualifying opponents in a penalty shoot-out in the quarterfinals. After a period of discussion in the Iranian football federation, his contract was not renewed and Team Melli was left with a caretaker manager for several months.

Then-leading international goalscorer Ali Daei was chosen to become the new manager after Spanish coach Javier Clemente had been closer to signing on as Iran's national team manager, when talks collapsed when he refused to live full-time in the country.[22] Iran was placed with Kuwait, Syria and United Arab Emirates in the third round of 2010 World Cup qualifying. Ali Daei resigned from his position as the Iranian national coach on 29 March 2009,[23] replaced by Afshin Ghotbi. Iran failed to qualify for the 2010 World Cup after finishing fourth overall in its group.[24]

During the final game of the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against South Korea in Seoul on 17 June 2009, seven members of the team wore green wristbands in support of the Iranian Green Movement during the 2009 Iranian election protests. Initial rumors and false reports were that all seven players were banned for life by the Iranian Football Federation, however, state-run media claimed that all seven had "retired".[25][26] On 24 June 2009, FIFA wrote to Iran's Football Federation asking for clarification on the situation. The Iranian Football Federation replied that no disciplinary action has been taken against any player.[27]

Iran's squad in July 2011 against Maldives. Manager: Carlos Queiroz
Standing left to right: Aghili, Hosseini, Haddadifar, Ansarifard, Zare, Pooladi
Sitting left to right: Heydari, Norouzi, Rahmati, Khalatbari, Karimi

Iran renewed the contract with Afshin Ghotbi until the end of 2011 AFC Asian Cup and the team qualified to the tournament with 13 points as the group winners.

During the final qualification match against South Korea, several Iranian players started the match wearing green armbands or wristbands, a symbol of protest at the outcome of the Iranian presidential election.[28] Most removed them at half-time. The newspaper Iran reported that Ali Karimi, Mehdi Mahdavikia, Hosein Kaebi and Vahid Hashemian had received life bans from the Iranian FA for the gesture.[29] However, the Iranian FA denied this claim in a response to FIFA's inquiry saying that "the comments in foreign media are nothing but lies and a mischievous act."[30] Head coach Afshin Ghotbi also confirmed that it was a rumour and Iranian FA "has not taken any official stand on this issue."[31]

Afshin Ghotbi qualified Iran for the 2011 Asian Cup and finished second in the West Asian Football Federation Championship 2010 just a few months before the Asian Cup. Iran were able to gain all nine possible points in the group stage of the Asian Cup but after an extra time goal from South Korea, Iran were yet again eliminated from the quarter-finals.

On 4 April 2011, former Real Madrid manager Carlos Queiroz agreed to a two-and-a-half-year deal to coach the Iranian national team until the end of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.[32] Under Queiroz, Iran began their World Cup qualification campaign successfully, defeating the Maldives 4–0 in the first leg of their second round of qualifiers. After winning 5–0 on aggregate, Iran advanced to the third round of qualifiers where they were drawn with Indonesia, Qatar and Bahrain.

Iran highlighted their position at the top of their group by defeating Bahrain 6–0 at home in the Azadi Stadium as well as inviting former German youth international Ashkan Dejagah who scored twice on his debut against Qatar. After a 4–1 win at Indonesia, Iran qualified for the final round of direct qualifiers, the fourth round. In the fourth round, Iran played South Korea, Qatar, Uzbekistan and Lebanon in their group. Queiroz made new foreign-based additions to his squad, adding players such as Reza Ghoochannejhad to his team.

Iran started their fourth round of Asian qualifiers with a 1–0 win in Uzbekistan. Team Melli then drew Qatar and lost in Lebanon before defeating South Korea at the Azadi on 16 October with a goal from captain Javad Nekounam. After a 1–0 loss in Tehran against Uzbekistan, Iran defeated Qatar 1–0 in Doha and Lebanon 4–0 at home. In their last qualification match, Iran defeated South Korea 1–0 in Ulsan Munsu with a goal from Ghoochannejhad, clinching their ticket to Brazil as group winners with 16 points. Thus, Iran became the third team that Queiroz has managed to qualify for the World Cup, having reached the 2002 edition with South Africa and the 2010 edition with Portugal, leading the latter to a knockout stage finish. Iran continued their winning streak, securing qualification to the 2015 Asian Cup months later as well.[33]

Since Queiroz's role as manager of the Iranian national team, he has been renowned for introducing players from the Iranian diaspora to the national squad. These players include German-Iranians Daniel Davari and Ashkan Dejagah, Dutch-Iranian Reza Ghoochannejhad, Swedish-Iranians Omid Nazari and Saman Ghoddos, and Iranian-American Steven Beitashour among others.[34][35]

Iran v Argentina, 2014 World Cup

Iran competed in Group F alongside Argentina, Nigeria and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Prior to the tournament, they founded the Central Asian Football Association.[36]

In the opening match of the tournament on 16 June, Iran drew Nigeria 0–0 making it their first clean sheet in the World Cup.[37] In their next match, Iran was defeated by Argentina 1–0 with a late goal from Lionel Messi and received praise after holding Argentina for 90 minutes while creating some attacking opportunities of their own.[38] Iran was eliminated from the tournament in their next game, a 3–1 defeat to Bosnia and Herzegovina. Iran's lone goal was scored by Reza Ghoochannejhad.[39] After the tournament, Queiroz declared he would resign as manager of Iran but later switched and extended his contract until the 2018 FIFA World Cup.[40]

Late 2010s

Iran qualified for the 2015 AFC Asian Cup as group winners where Team Melli were the highest ranked seed.[41] Iran faced Bahrain, Qatar and the UAE in Group C. With the second highest number of fans in the tournament after hosts Australia, the Iranians defeated Bahrain 2–0 with limited preparations.[42][43] A defensive-minded Iran then defeated Qatar 1–0 thanks to a Sardar Azmoun goal before defeating UAE by the same scoreline to reach the top of their group.[44][45] In the quarter-finals Iran faced Iraq who they had beaten weeks prior in a friendly match. Having received a controversial red card in the first half, Iran competed with ten men, managing to score goals late in extra time to draw the match 3–3. In the ensuing penalty shootout, Iran lost 7–6.[46][47]

Iran's squad against Portugal in Mordovia Arena at the 2018 FIFA World Cup

Iran began their 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign with friendly matches against Chile and Sweden in March 2015.[48][49][50] Queiroz resigned from his managerial post thereafter due to disagreements with the Iranian Football Federation.[51] On 14 April 2015, Iran were drawn with Oman, India, Turkmenistan and Guam in the second round of qualifiers.[52] On 26 April, Queiroz announced that he would continue as the manager of Iran for their 2018 World Cup campaign. Iran became the second team to qualify for the 2018 World Cup[53] after a 2–0 win at home over Uzbekistan on 12 June 2017.[54] They also clinched first place in their qualification group after South Korea's defeat to Qatar.[55]

Iran won the first match against Morocco after Aziz Bouhaddouz scoring an own goal.[56] They then lost against Spain with a goal scored by Diego Costa, with video assistant referees denying an Iranian equalizer.[57] The third match against Portugal ended in a draw after a penalty scored by Karim Ansarifard[58] and because Morocco could only manage a 2–2 draw to Spain, Iran were eliminated.[59] Iran's four points is the most received in any World Cup appearance.

Iran's squad against China at the 2019 AFC Asian Cup
Azmoun and Taremi played a key role in the front line of the team in these years.

Having qualified for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup earlier, Iran was drawn into group D, where they shared fate with Iraq, Vietnam and Yemen. Iran opened their tournament against Yemen slower and almost conceded a goal but after 10 minutes, Iran regained the ground and proved more dominant in certain aspects, thrashing Yemen 5–0.[60] A 2–0 win over the Vietnamese side gave Iran direct qualification to the knockout stage.[61] Iran ended their group stage with a goalless draw over neighbor Iraq and took first place.[62] After the group stage, Iran encountered Oman, with a defending mistake almost costing Iran's chances but Ahmed Mubarak Al-Mahaijri's penalty was saved by Alireza Beiranvand. Iran then defeated Oman 2–0 to reach the last eight.[63] In the quarter-finals against a defensive China, Iran outclassed the Chinese 3–0 to meet Japan in the semi-finals.[64] Iran missed the opportunity to reach the final once again when they fell 3–0 with all three goals scored in second half.[65]

Early 2020s

Iran's squad against England at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Iran was the highest-ranked team to be seeded in the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification. Iran was drawn into the second round where they would have to deal with two Arab countries, Iraq and Bahrain, along with Cambodia and Hong Kong. Iran, under new Belgian manager Marc Wilmots, began with a 2–0 win over Hong Kong away. After the death of Sahar Khodayari, the 14–0 win over Cambodia allowed select Iranian women to enter the stadium for the first time since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.[66][67][68] Their next away encounters against Bahrain and Iraq went on to be consecutive defeats which Iran lost 0–1 and 1–2, respectively.[69][70] Following two consecutive draws between Iraq and Bahrain, Iran was left with the possibility of being eliminated from the World Cup outright in the second round, leading to the sacking of Marc Wilmots.[71]

The COVID-19 pandemic in Iran forced the remaining fixtures to be played without spectators in June 2021, forcing Iran to play their remaining games in Bahrain under new coach Dragan Skočić; but with Bahrain losing its home support as an advantage, and Iraq assured a place in the final phase, Iran was able to stage a comeback, occupying first place and, together with Iraq, progressed to the final phase.[72]

Iran became the thirteenth team to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup after a 1–0 win at home over Iraq on 27 January 2022. In March 2022, Iranian women were again banned from entering the stadium for a World Cup qualifier.[73] Iran's World Cup preparation friendly match against Canada at BC Place in June 2022 was cancelled by the Canadian Soccer Association amid opposition and mounting criticism, namely in regards to the Iranian government's role in shooting down Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752.[74][75]

By the start of the World Cup in Qatar, Iran was the highest ranked team from Asia. In October 2022, calls were made to ban the Iranian national team from the World Cup for the Iranian government's blocking of Iranian women from their stadiums, their supplying of weapons to Russia during the invasion of Ukraine, and the treatment towards protesters during the Mahsa Amini protests.[76][77][78] However, Iran started its World Cup campaign with a nightmare, losing 2–6 to England in the opening game as Iran suffered the worst ever loss in its FIFA World Cup history.[79] The Iranian team notably made headlines in their opening match against England after refusing to sing the national anthem in solidarity with the Mahsa Amini protests, with some Iranian supporters cheering against their own team or boycotting their team amidst the ongoing protests as they felt the team was representing the government.[80][81][82][83]

In the following match against Wales, amidst the boos and whistles from some of the Iranian supporters during the playing of the national anthem, the Iranian players were filmed singing the national anthem before defeating Wales 2–0 for their first-ever win over a European nation at the World Cup, with some protestors having their pre-revolutionary Lion and Sun flags and Women, Life, Freedom banners snatched from them by pro-government fans and stadium security at the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium.[84][85][86][87] Protesters were harassed by government supporters with some protesters being detained by Qatari police, while stadium security confirmed they were given orders to confiscate anything but the flag of the Islamic Republic of Iran.[88][89] Documents obtained by Iran International showed Iran was coordinating secret efforts with Qatar to control who attends the World Cup and restrict any signs of dissent.[90]

Ahead of Iran's final group stage match against the United States, the Iranian players were allegedly called in to a meeting with members of the IRGC and were threatened with violence and torture for their families if they did not sing the national anthem or joined the protests against the Iranian regime.[91] During the match, the Iranian players sang the national anthem again before losing to the United States 1–0 for the first time in their history and thereby being knocked out of the tournament.[92] Some Iranians celebrated the defeat and one Iranian man was killed by security forces in Bandar-e Anzali after honking his car horn in celebration.[93] Another Iranian fan was also arrested by Qatari police after he was wearing a shirt with the Woman, Life, Freedom slogan.[94] |}

Team image

Nicknames

The Iranian national team has received several nicknames by supporters and media. The most common one used is "Team Melli" (Persian: تیم ملی), meaning "The National Team" in Persian language. Although the Iranian supporters have popularized "Team Melli",[95][96] other nicknames for the team include "Persian Stars"[97][98][99] (entitled since the World Cup 2006) "Shiran e Iran",[100][101] meaning "The Iranian Lions" or "The Lions of Persia",[102] "Shir Dilan", "Lion Hearts" and "Princes of Persia"[103][104] (used since AFC Asian Cup 2011).[105] Iran's slogan for the 2014 FIFA World Cup was Honour of Persia, selected in an internet poll held by FIFA.[106][107] A more recently used nickname, due to the presence of the Asiatic cheetah on the 2014 World Cup jersey, is Youzpalangan which means "The Cheetahs".[108] The team mascot "Yupa" is also a cheetah.[109]

Kits and crests

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Iran national football team kits.

Traditionally, Iran national football team's home kit is white, and the away kit is red. Sometimes, green shirts with white shorts and red socks are used.

Kit suppliers

The table below shows the history of kit supplier for the Iranian national football team.

Kit supplier Period
West Germany Adidas 1978
West Germany Puma[110] 1980
Iran Amini[111] 1981–1993
Iran Shekari 1993–1998
Germany Puma 1998–2000
Iran Shekari 2000–2003
Iran Daei Sport 2003–2006
Germany Puma 2006–2007
Iran Merooj 2007–2008
Iran Daei Sport 2008–2009
Italy Legea 2009–2012
Germany Uhlsport[108] 2012–2016
Italy Givova[112] 2016
Germany Adidas[113] 2016–2019
Germany Uhlsport 2019–2022
Iran Merooj[114] 2022–present

Sponsorship

On 1 February 2014, Iran announced the addition of the endangered Asiatic cheetah on their 2014 FIFA World Cup kits to bring attention to its conservation efforts.[108]

Rivalries

Iran and Iraq are neighboring rivals, sharing a history. According to the Malay Mail, "Emotions are always high when Iran and Iraq meet on the football pitch". In the contemporary era, especially during the reign of Saddam Hussein, the two countries had worsened relations and fought the Iran–Iraq War for 8 years.[115][116][117][118][119] In 2001, for the first time in decades, an Iran-Iraq match was not held at a neutral venue.[117] The rivalry was escalated after Iraq knocked Iran out of the 2015 AFC Asian Cup in controversial circumstances.[120][121] Iran leads the series with 17 wins, 7 draws and 6 losses.

Iran and Saudi Arabia are ideological rivals.[122] The game was ranked eighth in Goal.com's 2010 list of "Football's 10 Greatest International Rivalries".[123] and ninth in Bleacher Report's 2014 list of "International Football's 10 Most Politically-Charged Football Rivalries"[124] All of their matches have been competitive; none of them were friendlies. The first match was played on 24 August 1975, with Iran defeating Saudi Arabia 3–0. Iran leads the series with 5 wins, 6 draws and 4 losses.

Iran and South Korea are competitive rivals with over 50 years of history.[125] As two of the leading teams in the continent in the 1970s, the rivalry is among the most storied in Asian football. Since their initial meeting in the 1958 Asian Games, they have faced off in a total of 32 games. South Korea frequently held the upper hand in the early years of the competition, but things started to shift in the twenty-first century. Iran has triumphed six times since 2006, while Korea has only defeated them once—by a score of 1–0 at the Asian Cup in 2011. Before Korea recovered its footing in 2017 and pushed the Middle Eastern team to a tie the past three times they faced off, Iran won four straight games after the 2011 AFC Asian Cup.

Stadiums

Azadi Stadium, 1991

Since 1972, Iran's national stadium has been Tehran's Azadi Stadium with a nominal capacity of 78,116 spectators.[126] Azadi Stadium is the 28th largest association football stadium in the world, seventh in Asia and first in West Asia. A record was set in Azadi for the 1998 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Australia with over 128,000 in attendance.[127] Since 1979, the government restricts Iranian women from entering the stadiums.[128][129] However, FIFA condemned the move and wrote to Iranian Football Federation in June 2019. The federation in their letter gave deadline to uplift the restrictions and let women enter the stadiums. On 25 August 2019, deputy Sports Minister Jamshid Taghizadeh stated: "Women can go to Tehran's Azadi stadium to watch the match between Iran's national team and Cambodia in October for the Qatar World Cup qualifier.”[130] After the death of Sahar Khodayari, select Iranian women were allowed to attend the match against Cambodia in October 2019.[66] However, in March 2022, Iranian women were again blocked from entering the stadium for a World Cup qualifier.[131]

From 1942 to 1972, Amjadieh Stadium was Iran's national stadium. The other stadiums that Iran has been played international games are Bagh Shomal and Yadegar Emam Stadium (Tabriz), Takhti Stadium (Tehran), Enghelab Stadium (Karaj), Hafezieh Stadium (Shiraz), Takhti Stadium and Imam Reza Stadium (Mashhad).

The Iran National Football Camp is the team's training ground.

Results and fixtures

All opponents that the Iran football team has played at least once

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

  Win   Draw   Loss   Fixture

2023

23 March Friendly Iran  1–1  Russia Tehran, Iran
20:30 UTC+3:30
  • Taremi 49' (pen.)
 Report
Stadium: Azadi Stadium
Referee: Ilgiz Tantashev (Uzbekistan)
28 March Friendly Iran  2–1  Kenya Tehran, Iran
20:30 UTC+3:30
Report
Stadium: Azadi Stadium
Attendance: 25,000
Referee: Zaid Thamer (Iraq)
13 June 2023 CAFA Nations Cup Iran  6–1  Afghanistan Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
21:00 UTC+6
Stadium: Dolen Omurzakov Stadium
Referee: Golmorad Saadollah (Tajikistan)
16 June 2023 CAFA Nations Cup Kyrgyzstan  1–5  Iran Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
21:00 UTC+6
Stadium: Dolen Omurzakov Stadium
Referee: Akhrol Riskullaev (Uzbekistan)
20 June 2023 CAFA Nations Cup Final Uzbekistan  0–1  Iran Tashkent, Uzbekistan
20:30 UTC+5
Stadium: Milliy Stadium
Referee: Kirill Levnikov (Russia)
7 September Friendly Bulgaria  0–1  Iran Plovdiv, Bulgaria
19:00 UTC+3 Report
Stadium: Hristo Botev
Attendance: 9,500
Referee: Lazar Lukic (Serbia)
12 September Friendly Iran  4–0  Angola Tehran, Iran
19:00 UTC+3:30
Report Stadium: Azadi Stadium
Referee: Mohammed Al-Hoaish (Saudi Arabia)
13 October 2023 Jordan International Tournament Jordan  1–3  Iran Amman, Jordan
21:00 UTC+3
Report
Stadium: Amman International Stadium
Referee: Mohammed Al-Hoaish (Saudi Arabia)
17 October 2023 Jordan International Tournament Iran  4–0  Qatar Amman, Jordan
21:00 UTC+3
Report Stadium: Amman International Stadium
Attendance: 1,000
Referee: ahmad Ibrahim Yacoub (Jordan)
16 November 2026 WCQ / 2027 ACQ Iran  4–0  Hong Kong Tehran, Iran
18:00 UTC+3:30
Report Stadium: Azadi Stadium
Attendance: 6,191
Referee: Nazmi Nasaruddin (Malaysia)
21 November 2026 WCQ / 2027 ACQ Uzbekistan  2–2  Iran Tashkent, Uzbekistan
18:00 UTC+5
Report
Stadium: Milliy Stadium
Attendance: 32,551
Referee: Mohammed Abdulla Hassan Mohamed (UAE)

2024

5 January Friendly Iran  2–1  Burkina Faso Kish, Iran
18:00 UTC+3:30
Report
Stadium: Olympic Stadium
Attendance: 7,000
Referee: Yousif Saeed Hassan (Iraq)
9 January Friendly Indonesia  0–5  Iran Al Rayyan, Qatar
18:00 UTC+3 Report
Stadium: Al Rayyan Training Ground
Attendance: 0
14 January Asian Cup Iran  4–1  Palestine Al Rayyan, Qatar
 Report
Stadium: Education City Stadium
Attendance: 27,691
Referee: Abdulrahman Al-Jassim (Qatar)
21 March 2026 WCQ / 2027 ACQ Iran  v  Turkmenistan Tehran, Iran
Stadium: Azadi Stadium
26 March 2026 WCQ / 2027 ACQ Turkmenistan  v  Iran Ashgabat, Turkmenistan
Stadium: Köpetdag Stadium
6 June 2026 WCQ / 2027 ACQ Hong Kong  v  Iran So Kon Po, Hong Kong
Stadium: Hong Kong Stadium
11 June 2026 WCQ / 2027 ACQ Iran  v  Uzbekistan Tehran, Iran
Stadium: Azadi Stadium
  • FIFA International match days 2020–2024[132]

Coaching staff

[133]

Position Name
Head Coach Iran Amir Ghalenoei
Assistant Coach(es) Italy Antonio Manicone
Iran Rahman Rezaei
Iran Hamid Motahari
Iran Andranik Teymourian
Iran Saeed Alhoei
Goalkeeping Coach Romania Alin Dincă
Fitness Coach Iran Ali Asghar Ghorbanalipour
Physiotherapist Iran Dr. Alireza Shahab
Team Doctor Iran Dr. Parhan Khanlari
Masseurs Iran Hadi Nejatpour
Iran Amir Esmaeili
Team Supervisor Iran Mehdi Kharati
Team Management Iran Mahdi Mohammadnabi

Players

Current squad

The following 26 players have been called up to training camp for preparation of 2023 AFC Asian Cup.[134]

Caps and goals updated as of 14 January 2024 , after the match against  Palestine.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1 1GK Alireza Beiranvand (1992-09-21) 21 September 1992 64 0 Iran Persepolis
12 1GK Payam Niazmand (1995-04-06) 6 April 1995 8 0 Iran Sepahan
22 1GK Hossein Hosseini (1992-06-30) 30 June 1992 10 0 Iran Esteghlal
2 2DF Sadegh Moharrami (1996-03-01) 1 March 1996 29 1 Croatia Dinamo Zagreb
3 2DF Ehsan Hajsafi (captain) (1990-02-25) 25 February 1990 138 7 Greece AEK Athens
4 2DF Shojae Khalilzadeh (1989-05-14) 14 May 1989 35 2 Iran Tractor
5 2DF Milad Mohammadi (1993-09-29) 29 September 1993 54 1 Greece AEK Athens
13 2DF Hossein Kanaanizadegan (1994-03-23) 23 March 1994 47 4 Iran Persepolis
19 2DF Majid Hosseini (1996-06-20) 20 June 1996 27 0 Turkey Kayserispor
23 2DF Ramin Rezaeian (1990-03-21) 21 March 1990 59 6 Iran Sepahan
24 2DF Aria Yousefi (2002-04-22) 22 April 2002 2 0 Iran Sepahan
25 2DF Saman Fallah (2001-05-12) 12 May 2001 2 0 Iran Gol Gohar
6 3MF Saeid Ezatolahi (1996-10-01) 1 October 1996 61 1 Denmark Vejle
7 3MF Alireza Jahanbakhsh (1993-08-11) 11 August 1993 77 15 Netherlands Feyenoord
8 3MF Omid Ebrahimi (1987-09-15) 15 September 1987 59 1 Qatar Al-Shamal
14 3MF Saman Ghoddos (1993-09-06) 6 September 1993 43 3 England Brentford
15 3MF Rouzbeh Cheshmi (1993-07-24) 24 July 1993 31 3 Iran Esteghlal
16 3MF Mehdi Torabi (1994-09-10) 10 September 1994 47 7 Iran Persepolis
17 3MF Ali Gholizadeh (1996-03-10) 10 March 1996 32 6 Poland Lech Poznań
21 3MF Mohammad Mohebi (1998-12-20) 20 December 1998 16 4 Russia Rostov
9 4FW Mehdi Taremi (1992-07-18) 18 July 1992 77 42 Portugal Porto
10 4FW Karim Ansarifard (1990-04-03) 3 April 1990 101 30 Cyprus Omonia
11 4FW Reza Asadi (1996-01-17) 17 January 1996 8 1 Iran Sepahan
18 4FW Mehdi Ghayedi (1998-12-05) 5 December 1998 13 5 United Arab Emirates Ittihad Kalba
20 4FW Sardar Azmoun (1995-01-01) 1 January 1995 76 50 Italy Roma
26 4FW Shahriyar Moghanlou (1994-12-21) 21 December 1994 6 2 Iran Sepahan

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called up for the team in the last 12 months.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Mohammad Reza Akhbari (1993-02-15) 15 February 1993 1 0 Iran Gol Gohar v.  Angola, 12 Sep 2023
GK Hossein Pour Hamidi (1998-03-26) 26 March 1998 1 0 Iran Tractor v.  Angola, 12 Sep 2023
DF Mohammad Daneshgar (1994-01-24) 24 January 1994 2 0 Iran Sepahan v.  Uzbekistan, 21 Nov 2023
DF Amin Hazbavi (2003-05-06) 6 May 2003 0 0 Qatar Al Sadd v.  Uzbekistan, 21 Nov 2023
DF Mohammad Ghorbani (2001-05-21) 21 May 2001 0 0 Iran Sepahan v.  Hong Kong, 16 Nov 2023
DF Morteza Pouraliganji INJ (1992-04-19) 19 April 1992 54 3 Iran Persepolis v.  Qatar, 17 Oct 2023
DF Saleh Hardani (1998-12-26) 26 December 1998 3 0 Iran Esteghlal v.  Qatar, 17 Oct 2023
DF Hossein Moradmand (1993-06-22) 22 June 1993 1 0 Iran Esteghlal v.  Angola, 12 Sep 2023
DF Mohammad Naderi (1996-10-05) 5 October 1996 1 0 Iran Tractor Mini Camp, 2 Jun 2023
DF Aref Aghasi (1997-01-02) 2 January 1997 1 0 Iran Tractor Mini Camp, 2 Jun 2023
DF Mehdi Tikdari (1996-07-12) 12 July 1996 0 0 Iran Gol Gohar Mini Camp, 2 Jun 2023
DF Ehsan Hosseini (1998-10-03) 3 October 1998 0 0 Iran Nassaji Mini Camp, 2 Jun 2023
DF Amir Mehdi Janmaleki (1999-02-01) 1 February 1999 0 0 Iran Nassaji Mini Camp, 2 Jun 2023
DF Armin Sohrabian (1995-07-26) 26 July 1995 1 0 Iran Esteghlal v.  Kenya, 28 Mar 2023
DF Milad Zakipour (1995-11-23) 23 November 1995 1 0 Iran Sepahan v.  Kenya, 28 Mar 2023
MF Javad Hosseinnejad (2003-06-26) 26 June 2003 2 0 Iran Sepahan v.  Burkina Faso PRE, 31 Dec 2023
MF Ali Karimi (1994-02-11) 11 February 1994 19 0 Turkey Kayserispor v.  Uzbekistan, 21 Nov 2023
MF Ahmad Nourollahi WD (1993-02-01) 1 February 1993 31 3 United Arab Emirates Al Wahda v.  Hong Kong, 16 Nov 2023
MF Vahid Amiri (1988-04-02) 2 April 1988 71 2 Iran Persepolis v.  Angola, 12 Sep 2023
MF Milad Sarlak (1995-03-26) 26 March 1995 13 0 Iran Persepolis v.  Angola, 12 Sep 2023
MF Alireza Alizadeh (1993-02-11) 11 February 1993 1 0 Iran Gol Gohar v.  Angola, 12 Sep 2023
MF Omid Noorafkan (1997-04-09) 9 April 1997 18 0 Iran Sepahan v.  Uzbekistan, 20 Jun 2023
MF Mohammad Karimi (1996-06-20) 20 June 1996 3 0 Iran Sepahan v.  Uzbekistan, 20 Jun 2023
MF Amirhossein Hosseinzadeh (2000-10-30) 30 October 2000 3 0 Iran Tractor v.  Uzbekistan, 20 Jun 2023
MF Saeid Mehri (1995-09-16) 16 September 1995 1 0 Iran Esteghlal v.  Uzbekistan, 20 Jun 2023
MF Mehran Ahmadi (1997-01-01) 1 January 1997 0 0 Iran Malavan Mini Camp, 2 Jun 2023
MF Mehdi Ghanbari (1999-01-01) 1 January 1999 0 0 Iran Tractor Mini Camp, 2 Jun 2023
MF Mehdi Mamizadeh (2000-01-01) 1 January 2000 0 0 Iran Gol Gohar Mini Camp, 2 Jun 2023
MF Gholamreza Sabet Imani (2000-04-06) 6 April 2000 0 0 Iran Paykan Mini Camp, 2 Jun 2023
MF Mehdi Hosseini (1993-09-16) 16 September 1993 0 0 Iran Tractor v.  Kenya, 28 Mar 2023
MF Reza Shekari (1998-05-31) 31 May 1998 0 0 Iran Sepahan v.  Kenya, 28 Mar 2023
MF Mohammadhossein Eslami (2001-04-13) 13 April 2001 0 0 Iran Zob Ahan v.  Kenya, 28 Mar 2023
FW Mehrdad Mohammadi (1993-09-29) 29 September 1993 5 2 Iran Esteghlal v.  Uzbekistan, 21 Nov 2023
FW Saeid Saharkhizan (2003-06-26) 26 June 2003 0 0 Iran Gol Gohar v.  Hong Kong, 16 Nov 2023
FW Shahab Zahedi (1995-08-18) 18 August 1995 1 0 Iran Persepolis v.  Uzbekistan, 20 Jun 2023
FW Allahyar Sayyadmanesh (2001-06-29) 29 June 2001 7 1 England Hull City Mini Camp, 2 Jun 2023
FW Javad Mohammadi (1996-07-20) 20 July 1996 0 0 Iran Zob Ahan Mini Camp, 2 Jun 2023
FW Mohammad Reza Azadi (1999-12-07) 7 December 1999 0 0 Iran Nassaji Mini Camp, 2 Jun 2023

INJ Withdrew due to injury
PRE Preliminary squad / standby
RET Retired from the national team
SUS Serving suspension
WD Player withdrew from the squad due to a non-injury issue.
COV Injured because of COVID-19

Player records

As of 5 January 2024[135]
Statistics include official FIFA-recognised matches only
Players in bold are still active with Iran.

Most appearances

Javad Nekounam is the most capped player in the history of Iran with 149 appearances.
Rank Player Caps Goals Career
1 Javad Nekounam[lower-alpha 1] 149 38 2000–2015
2 Ali Daei[lower-alpha 2] 148 108 1993–2006
3 Ehsan Hajsafi 138 7 2008–present
4 Ali Karimi 127 38 1998–2012
5 Jalal Hosseini 115 8 2007–2018
6 Mehdi Mahdavikia 110 13 1996–2009
7 Andranik Teymourian 101 9 2005–2016
Karim Ansarifard 101 30 2009–present
9 Karim Bagheri 87 50 1993–2010
Masoud Shojaei 87 8 2004–2019

Top goalscorers

Ali Daei is the world's second all-time leading goalscorer in international matches, having scored 108 goals in 148 matches
Rank Player Goals Caps Ratio Career
1 Ali Daei[lower-alpha 2] (list) 108 148 0.73 1993–2006
2 Karim Bagheri 50 87 0.57 1993–2010
3 Sardar Azmoun 50 76 0.66 2014–present
4 Mehdi Taremi 42 77 0.55 2015–present
5 Ali Karimi 38 127 0.3 1998–2012
Javad Nekounam 38 149 0.26 2000–2015
7 Karim Ansarifard 30 101 0.3 2009–present
8 Gholam Hossein Mazloumi 19 40 0.48 1969–1977
9 Farshad Pious[136] 18 34 0.53 1984–1994
10 Reza Ghoochannejhad 17 44 0.36 2012–2018

Notes

  1. 1 2 Nekounam has two additional caps awarded by the Iranian FA. Those matches are not considered full internationals by FIFA, which only counts 149 appearances.[1]
  2. 1 2 3 Daei has an additional cap and goal awarded by the Iranian FA but in a match that is not considered a full international by FIFA, which only counts 108 goals and 148 appearances.[2]

Most capped goalkeepers

Ahmadreza Abedzadeh is the most capped goalkeeper in the history of Iran with 79 caps.
Rank Player Caps Career
1 Ahmad Reza Abedzadeh 79 1987–1998
2 Mehdi Rahmati 77 2004–2012
3 Ebrahim Mirzapour 71 2001–2011
4 Alireza Beiranvand 64 2015–present
5 Nasser Hejazi[137] 62 1968–1980
6 Aziz Asli 28 1962–1968
Behzad Gholampour 1990–1999
8 Alireza Haghighi 24 2012–2018
9 Mansour Rashidi 20 1972–1985
Parviz Boroumand 1998–2001

Captains

Ehsan Hajsafi is the current Iran national team captain.
# Reign Player Career Total As Captain Tournaments
Caps Goals Caps Goals
1 1965–1967 Mohammad Ranjbar 1959–1967 23 0 9 0
2 1967–1970 Hassan Habibi 1958–1970 31 0 10 0 1968 AFC Asian Cup
3 1970–1972 Mostafa Arab 1959–1972 48 2 13 0 1972 AFC Asian Cup
4 1972–1977 Parviz Ghelichkhani 1964–1977 64 12 26 7 1976 AFC Asian Cup
5 1977–1980 Ali Parvin 1970–1980 76 13 31 2 1978 FIFA World Cup
6 1980 Nasser Hejazi 1968–1980 62 0 7 0 1980 AFC Asian Cup
7 1980–1984 Mehdi Dinvarzadeh 1977–1984 26 0 9 0
8 1984–87
1989–91		 Mohammad Panjali 1978–1991 45 0 27 0 1984 AFC Asian Cup
9 1987–89
1991–93		 Sirous Ghayeghran 1986–1993 43 6 22 3 1988 AFC Asian Cup
1992 AFC Asian Cup
10 1993 Hamid Derakhshan 1980–1993 41 9 12 3
11 1993–1994 Farshad Pious 1984–1994 35 19 4 1
12 1996 Mojtaba Moharrami 1988–1996 37 5 2 0 1996 AFC Asian Cup
13 1996–1998 Ahmad Reza Abedzadeh 1988–1998 78 0 38 0 1998 FIFA World Cup
14 1998–1999 Nader Mohammadkhani 1988–1999 64 4 9 1 1998 FIFA World Cup
15 1999–2000 Javad Zarincheh 1987–2000 80 1 8 0
16 2000–2006 Ali Daei 1993–2006 148 108 80 44 2000 AFC Asian Cup
2004 AFC Asian Cup
2006 FIFA World Cup
17 2006–2009 Mehdi Mahdavikia 1996–2009 111 13 17 1 2007 AFC Asian Cup
18 2009–2015 Javad Nekounam 2000–2015 149 38 56 18 2011 AFC Asian Cup
2014 FIFA World Cup
2015 AFC Asian Cup
19 2015–2016 Andranik Teymourian 2005–2016 101 9 9 1
20 2016–2019 Masoud Shojaei 2004–2019 87 8 11 0 2018 FIFA World Cup
2019 AFC Asian Cup
21 2019– Ehsan Hajsafi 2008– 138 7 40 3 2022 FIFA World Cup
2023 AFC Asian Cup

Competition records

FIFA World Cup

FIFA World Cup record Qualification record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad Manager(s) Pld W D L GF GA
Uruguay 1930 Not a FIFA member No qualification
Italy 1934 Not a FIFA member
France 1938
Brazil 1950Did not enter Did not enter
Switzerland 1954
Sweden 1958
Chile 1962
England 1966
Mexico 1970
West Germany 1974Did not qualify 851296
Argentina 1978 First round14th301228SquadMohajerani121020203
Spain 1982Withdrew Withdrew
Mexico 1986Disqualified Disqualified
Italy 1990Did not qualify 6501125
United States 1994 115332313
France 1998 Group stage20th310224SquadTalebi178635717
South KoreaJapan 2002Did not qualify14932369
Germany 2006 Group stage25th301226SquadIvanković12912297
South Africa 2010Did not qualify14581159
Brazil 2014Group stage 28th301214SquadQueiroz161042307
Russia 2018 18th311122Squad181260365
Qatar 2022 26th310247Squad181413498
CanadaMexicoUnited States 2026To be determined 211062
MoroccoPortugalSpain 2030 To be determined
Saudi Arabia 2034
TotalFirst round6/221834111331——14893361932291

Olympic Games

Summer Olympics record Qualification record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad Manager(s) Pld W D L GF GA
France 1900Not an IOC member No qualification
United States 1904
United Kingdom 1908
Sweden 1912
Belgium 1920
France 1924
Netherlands 1928
Germany 1936
United Kingdom 1948Did not enter
Finland 1952
Australia 1956Withdrew Withdrew
Italy 1960Did not enter Did not enter
Japan 1964First round12th301216SquadFekri 6411143
Mexico 1968Withdrew Withdrew
West Germany 1972First round12th310219SquadBayati 532060
Canada 1976Quarter-finals7th310245SquadMohajerani 431081
Soviet Union 1980Qualified but later boycotted the event 6420222
United States 1984Boycotted the event Did not enter
South Korea 1988Did not qualify 210122
1992–present See Iran national under-23 team See Iran national under-23 team
TotalQuarter-finals4/179216620—— 231562528

AFC Asian Cup

AFC Asian Cup record Qualification record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad Manager(s) Pld W D L GF GA
Hong Kong 1956Withdrew Withdrew
South Korea 1960Did not qualify 63121210
Israel 1964Withdrew Withdrew
Iran 1968Champions1st4400112SquadBayatiQualified as hosts
Thailand 1972Champions1st5500124SquadRanjbarQualified as champions
Iran 1976Champions 1st4400130SquadMohajeraniQualified as hosts
Kuwait 1980Third place3rd6321166SquadHabibiQualified as champions
Singapore 1984Fourth place4th624083SquadEbrahimi6600222
Qatar 1988Third place3rd622234SquadDehdari422061
Japan 1992Group stage5th311121SquadParvin2200100
United Arab Emirates 1996Third place3rd6321146SquadKohan6600271
Lebanon 2000Quarter-finals5th421173SquadTalebi6411162
China 2004Third place3rd6330148SquadIvanković6501165
IndonesiaMalaysiaThailandVietnam 2007Quarter-finals5th422063SquadGhalenoei6420122
Qatar 20115th430162SquadGhotbi6411112
Australia 20156th431073SquadQueiroz6510185
United Arab Emirates 2019Semi-finals 3rd6411123SquadQueiroz8620263
Qatar 2023In progress110041SquadGhalenoei8602344
Saudi Arabia 2027To be determined 211062
Total3 titles15/18694219813549——725411721639

Asian Games

Asian Games record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad Manager(s)
India 1951Runners-up2nd320153SquadSadaghiani
Philippines 1954Did not enter
Japan 1958Preliminary round14th200209SquadMészáros
Indonesia 1962Did not enter
Thailand 1966Runners-up2nd740396SquadSzűcs
Thailand 1970Preliminary round8th201123SquadNetto
Iran 1974Champions 1st7700201SquadO'Farrell
Thailand 1978Did not enter
India 1982Quarter-finals8th420232SquadCheraghpour
South Korea 19866th5311132SquadDehdari
China 1990Champions1st541071SquadParvin
Japan 1994Preliminary round9th412152SquadPoklepović
Thailand 1998Champions1st8701257SquadPourheidari
2002–present See Iran national under-23 team
Total3 titles10/1347305128936——

WAFF Championship

WAFF Championship record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad Manager(s)
Jordan 2000Champions 1st541071SquadTalebi
Syria 2002Third place3rd412143SquadIvanković
Iran 2004Champions1st4400173SquadIvanković
Jordan 2007Champions11st431051SquadMazloumi
Iran 2008Champions1st4400132SquadDaei
Jordan 2010Runners-up2nd421185SquadGhotbi
Kuwait 2012Group stage6th312021SquadQueiroz
Qatar 2014Did not enter
2019–onwardsNot a WAFF member
Total4 titles7/92819725616——
1 Iran played their B team in this tournament however recognised as international "A" matches.

CAFA Nations Cup

CAFA Nations Cup record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad Manager(s)
KyrgyzstanUzbekistan 2023Champions 1st3300122SquadGhalenoei
Total1 title1/13300122——

Other official competitions

Afro-Asian Cup of Nations

Afro-Asian Cup of Nations record (Defunct)
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad
GhanaIran 1978Not completed[lower-alpha 1]110030Squad
CameroonSaudi Arabia 1985Did not qualify
Qatar 1987
AlgeriaIran 1991Runners-up2nd210122Squad
Squad
Japan 1993Did not qualify
NigeriaUzbekistan 1995
Saudi ArabiaSouth Africa 1997
Japan 2007
TotalRunners-up2/8320152—
  1. ↑ The trophy was not awarded, because the second leg was cancelled.

AFC–OFC Challenge Cup

AFC–OFC Challenge Cup record (Defunct)
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad
Japan 2001Did not qualify
Iran 2003Champions1st110030Squad
Total1 title1/2110030—

RCD Cup/ECO Cup[lower-alpha 1]

RCD Cup/ECO Cup record (Defunct)
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad
Iran 1965Champions1st211041Squad
Pakistan 1967Runners-up2nd210121Squad
Turkey 1969Runners-up2nd210146Squad
Iran 1970Champions1st2[lower-alpha 2]11081Squad
Pakistan 1974Runners-up2nd2[lower-alpha 3]10122Squad
Iran 1993Champions1st4400102Squad
Total3 titles6/6149233013—
Only "A" matches3 titles6/6118122710—
  1. ↑ The tournament was not organized by an official sub-confederation, but was part of a socio-economic pact between its member states. Therefore, it is not considered an official regional tournament.
  2. ↑ Match against Turkey XI is not recognized as international "A" match.
  3. ↑ Iran sent Malavan F.C. to this tournament, therefore matches against Pakistan and Turkey are not recognized as international "A" matches.

Head-to-head record

Last match updated:  Palestine on 14 January.
Team M W D L GF GA GD Win percentage Confederation Best win Worst loss
 Afghanistan3210101+966.67%AFC6–1X
 Albania100101−10%UEFAX0–1
 Algeria420255050%CAF2–11–2
 Angola422072+550%CAF4–0X
 Argentina201112−10%CONMEBOLX0–1
 Armenia110031+2100%UEFA3–1X
 Australia[lower-alpha 1]632176+150%AFC / OFC2–00–3
 Austria100115−40%UEFAX1–5
 Azerbaijan321042+266.67%UEFA2–1X
 Bahrain188553213+1944.44%AFC6–02–4
 Bangladesh6600281+27100%AFC6–0X
 Belarus302134−10%UEFAX1–2
 Bolivia110021+1100%CONMEBOL2–1X
 Bosnia and Herzegovina75111910+971.43%UEFA4–01–3
 Botswana10101100%CAFXX
 Brazil100103−30%CONMEBOLX0–3
 Bulgaria211021+150%UEFA1–0X
 Burkina Faso110021+1100%CAF2–1X
 Cambodia4400281+27100%AFC14–0X
 Cameroon20201100%CAFXX
 Canada320121+166.67%CONCACAF1–00–1
 Chile311143+133.33%CONMEBOL2–01–2
 China2313643918+2156.52%AFC4–00–2
 Chinese Taipei5500220+22100%AFC6–0X
 Costa Rica211032+150%CONCACAF3–2X
 Croatia201124−20%UEFAX0–2
 Cyprus10100000%UEFAXX
 Czech Republic100101−10%UEFAX0–1
 Denmark10100000%UEFAXX
 Ecuador302123−10%CONMEBOLX0–1
 Egypt10101100%CAFXX
 England100126−40%UEFAX2–6
 France100112−10%UEFAX1–2
 Georgia110021+1100%UEFA2–1X
 Germany200204−40%UEFAX0–2
 Ghana220050+5100%CAF3–0X
 Guam3300310+31100%AFC19–0X
 Guatemala10102200%CONCACAFXX
 Guinea201123−10%CAFX1–2
 Hong Kong7700181+17100%AFC4–0X
 Hungary300316−50%UEFAX0–2
 Iceland110010+1100%UEFA1–0X
 India8512176+1162.5%AFC4–01–3
 Indonesia6510163+1383.33%AFC5–0X
 Iraq2816663721+1657.14%AFC3–01–2
 Republic of Ireland310224−233.33%UEFA1–00–2
 Israel531176+160%UEFA / AFC3–00–4
 Jamaica220091+8100%CONCACAF8–1X
 Japan186661921−233.33%AFC2–00–3
 Jordan147341811+750%AFC4–12–3
 Kazakhstan220050+5100%UEFA / AFC3–0X
 Kenya330061+5100%CAF3–0X
 North Korea181440287+2177.78%AFC3–0X
 South Korea331310103436−239.39%AFC6–20–5
 Kuwait30131073931+843.33%AFC3–10–3
 Kyrgyzstan4400212+19100%AFC7–0X
 Laos3300201+19100%AFC7–0X
 Lebanon121011313+2883.33%AFC5–00–1
 Libya110040+4100%CAF4–0X
 Lithuania110010+1100%UEFA1–0X
 North Macedonia321073+466.67%UEFA3–1X
 Madagascar110010+1100%CAF1–0X
 Malaysia440080+8100%AFC3–0X
 Maldives6600420+42100%AFC17–0X
 Mali100112−10%CAFX1–2
 Mexico300329−70%CONCACAFX0–4
 Montenegro211021+150%UEFA2–1X
 Morocco110010+1100%CAF1–0X
 Myanmar530274+360%AFC3–10–1
   Nepal5500250+25100%AFC8–0X
 Netherlands100103−30%UEFAX0–3
 New Zealand211030+350%OFC3–0X
 Nicaragua110010+1100%CONCACAF1–0X
 Nigeria201101−10%CAFX0–1
 Oman137422615+1153.85%AFC4–02–4
 Pakistan1412115810+4885.71%AFC9–11–4
 Palestine6420183+1560%AFC7–0X
 Panama220031+2100%CONCACAF2–1X
 Papua New Guinea110081+7100%OFC8–1X
 Paraguay10101100%CONMEBOLXX
 Peru100114−30%CONMEBOLX1–4
 Philippines110071+6100%AFC7–1X
 Poland200203−30%UEFAX0–2
 Portugal301216−50%UEFAX0–3
 Qatar2416534116+2566.67%AFC6–10–2
 Romania20202200%UEFAXX
 Russia512235−220%UEFA1–00–2
 Saudi Arabia144641913+628.57%AFC3–03–4
 Scotland10101100%UEFAXX
 Senegal20202200%CAFXX
 Serbia301214−30%UEFAX1–3
 Sierra Leone110040+4100%CAF4–0X
 Singapore3210102+866.67%AFC6–0X
 Slovakia210166050%UEFA4–32–3
 Spain100101−10%UEFAX0–1
 Sri Lanka2200110+11100%AFC7–0X
 Sweden100113−20%UEFAX1–3
 Syria30181115215+3760%AFC7–10–1
 Tajikistan4400141+13100%AFC6–1X
 Thailand141130325+2778.57%AFC5–0X
 Togo220040+4100%CAF2–0X
 Trinidad and Tobago220030+3100%CONCACAF2–0X
 Tunisia201123−10%CAFX0–1
 Turkey6024213−110%UEFAX1–6
 Turkmenistan8332108+237.5%AFC3–10–1
 Uganda10102200%CAFXX
 Ukraine110010+1100%UEFA1–0X
 United Arab Emirates181431264+2277.78%AFC3–01–3
 United States311133033.33%CONCACAF2–10–1
 Uruguay211021+150%CONMEBOL1–0X
 Uzbekistan131021185+1381.82%AFC4–00–1
 Venezuela321031+266.67%CONMEBOL1–0X
 Vietnam110020+2100%AFC2–0X
 Wales210121+150%UEFA2–00–1
 Yemen3300111+10100%AFC5–0X
 South Yemen3300120+12100%AFC8–0X
 Zambia110032+1100%CAF3–2X
Total (117) 5923401401121138462+67657.28%–––

FIFA World rankings

FIFA World Rankings for Iran, August 1993 – March 2018[138]

Between December 2014 until May 2018, Iran was the highest-ranked team in Asia, the longest continuous period of time that a team has held that distinction.[139]

Highest FIFA ranking
15 (July 2005)[140]
Lowest FIFA ranking
122 (May 1996)[140]
Best mover
+65 (July 1996)[140]
Worst mover
–43 (October 1995)[140]

Last update was on 01 January 2022[141]

  Best Ranking    Worst Ranking    Best Mover    Worst Mover  

Iran Iran's FIFA World Ranking History
Rank Year Games
Played		 Won Drawn Lost Best Worst
Rank Move Rank Move
24202211614 20Increase 224Decrease 4
212021111010 21Increase 531Decrease 2
2920202200 29Increase 333Decrease 0
33201912723 20Increase 733Decrease 6
29201815933 28Increase 537Decrease 3
32201711731 23Increase 743Decrease 9
29201610820 27Increase 1044Decrease 3
452015151041 38Increase 1051Decrease 4
51201410343 34Increase 556Decrease 7
3320139711 33Increase 1567Decrease 10
59201214473 44Increase 1459Decrease 15
452011151221 42Increase 2165Decrease 4
66201012822 57Increase 867Decrease 4
64200921786 42Increase 264Decrease 11
432008211272 37Increase 1151Decrease 10
41200713841 32Increase 547Decrease 8
38200615852 19Increase 547Decrease 24
19200511812 15Increase 221Decrease 3
202004181332 17Increase 731Decrease 3
28200311614 28Increase 747Decrease 7
33200210442 29Increase 234Decrease 3
292001201145 29Increase 851Decrease 7
372000261574 37Increase 753Decrease 6
4919996240 44Increase 351Decrease 20
27199818927 27Increase 1747Decrease 6
461997221174 46Increase 1787Decrease 6
831996211353 57Increase 65122Decrease 7
10819950000 63Increase 26108Decrease 43
7519944121 57Increase 275Decrease 9
59199315933 54Increase 759Decrease 4

Honours

Summary

Event Gold Silver Bronze Total
FIFA World Cup0000
Olympic Games0000
Asian Cup3047
Asian Games4205
Afro-Asian Cup of Nations0101
AFC–OFC Challenge Cup1001
West Asian Championship4116
CAFA Championship1000
ECO Cup3306
LG Cup4048
Minor Tournament45414
Total24121347

Continental

Champions: 1968, 1972, 1976
Third place: 1980, 1988, 1996, 2004
Fourth place: 1984
Semi-finals: 2019
Gold Medal: 1974, 1990, 1998, 2002
Silver Medal: 1951, 1966
Third place: 2006

Regional

1st place, gold medalist(s) Champions: 2000, 2004, 2007*, 2008
2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runners-up: 2010
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Third place: 2002
1st place, gold medalist(s) Champions: 2023
1st place, gold medalist(s) Champions: 1965, 1970, 1993
2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runners-up: 1967, 1969, 1974**

* as B Team
** as Malavan F.C.

Intercontinental

1st place, gold medalist(s) Champions: 2003
2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runners-up: 1991

Minor tournaments

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ On 4 November 1970, Iran played against Australia in a friendly, which Australia won 2–1 in Tehran. However, accounts of the match differ between Iran and Australia. Iran considered it an unofficial friendly between Persepolis against Australia, whereas Australia considered it an A level friendly match. Due to the article's position, this match is not listed.

References

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Iran national football team.
Awards and achievements
Preceded by Asian Champions
1968 (first title)
1972 (second title)
1976 (third title)		 Succeeded by
Preceded by Asian Games Champions
1974 (first title)		 Succeeded by
Preceded by Asian Games Champions
1990 (second title)		 Succeeded by
Preceded by Asian Games Champions
1998 (third title)
2002 (fourth title)		 Succeeded by
Preceded by
Inaugural champions
 WAFF Champions
2000(first title)		 Succeeded by
Preceded by WAFF Champions
2004 (second title)
2007 (third title)
2008 (fourth title)		 Succeeded by
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