Iran drew for the second time in a row at the 2026 World Cup, which it is competing in amid turbulent conditions due to the war in the Middle East, against strong Belgium, which was reduced to ten players from midway through the second half, in a scoreless draw in Los Angeles in the second round.

After opening with a draw against New Zealand, 2 to 2, at the modern SoFi Stadium, Iran raised its tally to two points in Group Seven, the same as Belgium, which also drew its opening match with Egypt, 1 to 1.

The Iranian national team arrived while its country was still at war with the United States, the co-host nation, and it stayed in Mexico in the city of Tijuana on the border with Los Angeles, while it is playing all of its group stage matches in the United States.

الحارس الإيراني علي رضا بيرانفاند. (أ ف ب)

Qalibaf comments on Iran’s performance at the 2026 World Cup

The Speaker of Parliament and chief Iranian negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, used a heroic moment from goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand and the Iranian defense against Belgium to deliver a direct political message carrying symbolic meanings about resilience and defending the country.

Commenting on the exceptional moment, Qalibaf said: “This is how we protect our land.”

This is how we protect our land pic.twitter.com/Y9x0OoE7Kb

— محمدباقر قالیباف | MB Ghalibaf (@mb_ghalibaf) June 21, 2026

Iranian goalkeeper Ali Reza Beiranvand won the Man of the Match award, which is given to the best player.

Iran coach Amir Ghalenoei said: “It was a beautiful match and both teams were capable of winning. I thank all the players, especially the goalkeeper who delivered an outstanding performance. Alireza Beiranvand is one of the best goalkeepers in Iran’s history and played one of his finest matches.”

الحارس الإيراني علي رضا بيرانفاند. (أ ف ب)

Group 7 standings after the second round of the 2026 World Cup

Egypt tops Group 7 with 4 points, two points ahead of both Iran and Belgium, who played out a 0 to 0 draw.

New Zealand sits bottom of the group with 1 point from its draw against Iran.

The winner and runner up of each group qualify, along with the best eight third placed teams, for the Round of 32.