Israel-Iran Tensions Stop Inter Milan Forward From Playing in Club World Cup
Israel-Iran Tensions Stop Inter Milan Forward From Playing in Club World Cup originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
Inter Milan will make its first appearance at the Club World Cup on Tuesday against Monterrey, but it won't have its full squad to compete in the first round. The former manager Simone Inzaghi was laid off his duties after the Champions League final, and one of its strikers can't travel to the U.S. due to the Israel-Iran conflict.
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The situation escalated quickly earlier this month when Israel launched a major operation targeting Iran's nuclear and military infrastructure. In response, Iran fired hundreds of ballistic missiles and drones at Israeli cities, triggering days of intense attacks on both sides.
With tensions at their highest point in years, Iranian nationals are currently facing travel limitations and visa issues in several Western countries — including the United States. Many flights that were circulating in the region were redirected in a matter of hours to avoid an accident involving missiles hitting a commercial airplane.
For this reason, the Inter Milan and Iran national team veteran striker Mehdi Taremi can't leave the country. After losing the Champions League final to PSG, the player went to defend Iran national team, and stayed in the country on vacation for a couple more days. According to Gazzetta dello Sport, he is currently unable to leave the country and resume professional duties, as the conflict continues.
The countries are exchanging missile attacks, and not only Taremi, but also hundreds of professionals such as politicians and journalists, can't leave the country due to the risk of an accident happening.
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Inter Milan might feel the absence of Taremi, since he's the direct substitute for either Lautaro Martinez and Marcus Thuram. For now, the Italian club will only count with the Esposito brothers and Valentin Carboni.
There's no prediction for Taremi to return to Inter Milan's official squad
The Israel–Iran conflict could escalate at any moment, and having not only Taremi but other citizens flying out of the country raises serious concerns. With both sides exchanging missile strikes, there's always the risk that a commercial flight could be caught in the crossfire — whether by accident or by a misfire from any direction.
It's not the first time war has affected football this way. When the Russia–Ukraine conflict escalated back in 2022, players rushed to leave the country as fast as they could. Shakhtar Donetsk, for example, had to evacuate its foreign players to Romania, and the team ended up playing in neutral venues for the rest of the season.
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 16, 2025, where it first appeared.
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