Nathan Sales discusses Iran deal enforcement, implications
Nathan Sales, former ambassador-at-large, emphasizes the critical need for transparency regarding the fine print of the Iran deal. He argues that US diplomacy must be backed up by credible threats of force, including military and economic tools, to ensure Iran’s compliance. He emphasizes that President Donald Trump’s commitment to ‘the ultimate consequences’ is crucial.
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An urgent hearing was held on Iran’s old flag being present at World Cup matches ahead of the tournament opening on Monday in Los Angeles.
A lawsuit was filed Thursday by the Institute for Voice of Liberty and an Iran fan, arguing that flying the “lion and sun” flag, which represents the country’s former regime and changed in 1980 after the Islamic revolution, is a form of free speech.
FIFA banned the flag ahead of the tournament, and Los Angeles referee Curtis A. Kin upheld it.
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An official speaks to people holding pre-revolutionary Iranian flags before the World Cup group stage match between Iran and New Zealand at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California on June 15, 2026. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
“Freedom of speech is incredibly important, it’s sacred, a cornerstone of our society, but it’s not without limitations, such as private actor, on private property, and as shown by previous cases, it regulates in a reasonable way,” Kin said, via The Athletic.
“There could be harm to around 2,500 staff who have to handle security protocols,” he added. “It is a huge burden to change a long-standing stadium protocol for a massive event in a matter of hours. It is hard to see how FIFA could make a change in one stadium and not the rest.”
After attorney Shahrokh Mokhtarzadeh pushed back on Kin’s ruling, Kin then asked a hypothetical whether fans could “walk in with a Nazi flag or a Confederate flag or a Soviet flag or that of the KKK?” Mokhtarzadeh said he believed such a fan should be able to.
An Iranian fan displays a pre-revolutionary Iranian flag ahead of the 2026 World Cup Group G match between Iran and New Zealand at Los Angeles Stadium in Inglewood on June 15, 2026. (Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images)
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FIFA has said that political material is not allowed and determined that the flag is “political” in nature. Some of the flags were still seen inside SoFi Stadium.
Iran’s presence in the World Cup has created quite a bit of controversy surrounding the ongoing war in the Middle East. After Monday’s game, the team was ordered to return to its training camp in Mexico as soon as possible.
Iran held New Zealand to a 2-2 draw in Los Angeles hours after the hearing – its next game will be against Belgium on Sunday in Los Angeles, before completing group play against Egypt on June 26.
The game was played in a crackling atmosphere created in part by a conflicted, diasporic fan base that remains furious with the current Iranian government but still largely supports Team Melli.
Fans of Iran pose with a pre-revolutionary Iranian flag alongside an Israel flag during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group G match between Iran and New Zealand at Los Angeles Stadium on June 15, 2026. (Sebastian Frej/Getty Images)
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Still, the vast majority of the crowd loudly supported the Iranian players when the match started.
