5 min readUpdated: Jun 27, 2026 12:50 PM IST
“After review”.
Two words from Polish referee Szymon Marciniak, and the hearts of an entire nation broke. Moments before, Shojae Khalilzadeh had fired into the roof of the net from the edge of the six-yard box, whipped off his shirt and slid on his knees to the touchline. Someone handed him a pair of sunglasses. A member of Iran’s backroom staff collapsed flat on the turf. Another leaned in and kissed Khalilzadeh on the forehead. The bench had emptied. Seven World Cups. Never through. Until now, they thought.
Offside. Goal ruled out. Yasser Ibrahim then made a monumental block to deny Rezaeian’s shot after the ball squirted free. Iran had not won a single corner of the match until the 88th minute, and now, six minutes and 53 seconds into stoppage time, Saeid Ezatolahi sent a header against the crossbar. The game was more than 100 minutes old when Marciniak finally called time. Iran’s head coach Amir Ghalenoei slumped in his dugout and did not move for more than fifteen minutes.
Players of the two teams await a VAR review after Khalilzadeh’s goal that was later overturned during the World Cup Group G soccer match between Egypt and Iran in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)Three draws from three games. Seven World Cups, still no knockout stage. Not yet, anyway.
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None of this should have been straightforward to reach. Iran came into this tournament under conditions no other team at these finals has faced. US and Israeli strikes on the country months before meant their participation was uncertain for weeks. FIFA denied their request to move games to Mexico. They trained in Tijuana, were permitted to enter the United States only on matchdays, and flew back the same night after every game. Their federation president and press officers were not allowed into the country at all.
The fixture carried its own additional weight: a Pride Match designation from Seattle’s local organising committee, objected to formally by both federations, and a stadium where some Iranian fans booed their own national anthem and waved the pre-revolutionary lion-and-sun flag FIFA had banned. Ghalenoei, before kick-off, said his team were going to bring joy to their people. All four teams had gone into the night with a route through: Egypt top, Iran second, Belgium third, New Zealand fourth.
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Egypt’s Mohamed Salah prepares to take a corner kick during the World Cup Group G match between Egypt and Iran in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Egypt were ahead inside five minutes. Mohamed Salah went for a left-footed curler from outside the box and Beiranvand turned it around the post. The ball dropped to Mahmoud Saber, whose shot had no right to go in. It went through Beiranvand’s hands and legs and into the net.
Beiranvand was immense in the goalless draw with Belgium. This was something else entirely.
Iran won a penalty in the tenth minute. Captain Mehdi Taremi side-footed it tamely. Mostafa Shobeir dived left, comfortable. Four minutes later Iran were level. Shobeir saved Milad Mohammadi’s low shot and Ramin Rezaeian drilled the rebound into the roof of the net from a tight angle. It was his third World Cup goal, more than any Iranian in the tournament’s history.
The first half settled into an even contest after that frantic opening. Egypt had the better of it. Salah was taken off in the 57th minute and Iran began to feel the heat of what was happening in Vancouver: Belgium were building toward a 5-1 win over New Zealand, which meant Iran needed a win here to go through directly.
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They pressed. In the 89th minute Taremi’s header crashed off the crossbar. It was the second time in three games Iran had been denied by VAR — against Belgium, Taremi’s goal had been ruled out for offside in the 26th minute. In the 93rd, Khalilzadeh bundled in and the bench streamed onto the pitch. And then the two words. And then the block. And then the crossbar again. And then the whistle.
Iran’s Shoja Khalilzadeh and his teammates celebrate after scoring what looked like the winning goal but their joy would turn into despair just a few seconds later. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Egypt go through as runners-up, reaching the round of 32 for the first time, where they face Australia in Dallas. Iran finished the group as the sixth-best third-placed team, with the top eight eligible for the round of 32. Their wait now turns on results involving 2018 runners-up Croatia, Algeria and DR Congo, all in action on Sunday.
Before leaving Los Angeles after the Belgium draw, the players had left a handwritten note. “From the ancient Persia of thousands of years ago to the civilised Iran of today, the spirit of Iran remains alive and steadfast. We came to Los Angeles with Pride, competed with honour and leave with dignity.”
In the dugout, Ghalenoei had still not moved.
