Iran to play friendly match against Uzbekistan in Tashkent

TEHRAN – Iran national football team plan to play Uzbekistan in a friendly match as part of the preparation for the 2027 Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia.

The match has been scheduled for Sept. 24 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

Iran and Uzbekistan failed to advance beyond the group stage at the 2026 World Cup.

 The Iranian Football Federation, which failed to play friendly matches against strong opponents before the 2026 World Cup, has decided not to repeat the mistake this time and organize the preparatory phase more qualitatively.

“During the first FIFA days, three matches have been organized for the national team. One of the opponents will be an Asian team that participated in the World Cup (most likely Uzbekistan), and the second will be the Russian team. The third match has not yet been fully confirmed, but the opponent will be a European team,” head of Iran federation Mehdi Taj said.

Taj also explained why not all the details about the matches were disclosed and announced the plans for the next meeting.

“The official announcement about the matches will be announced simultaneously by the Iranian Football Federation, the host country and the sponsors. These three matches will be held in three different countries – one in Asia and two in Europe. From Nov. 9 to 17, the Iranian national team will participate in a tournament in Iraq and play two matches there,” he added.

It should be noted that earlier, the head coach of the Uzbekistan national team, Fabio Cannavaro, also said that negotiations are ongoing to hold a friendly match with Iran.