Iran vs New Zealand at the World Cup: Team News, Start Time, Lineups, and Where to Watch

Iran will finally take the field for their World Cup opener on Monday after months of uncertainty surrounding their participation in the tournament and following the United States-Israeli attacks on their country that began in late February.

They will face New Zealand against the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East and in a region, California, that is home to the largest Iranian diaspora community outside the country, adding a charged atmosphere to a contest between two nations that have never met at the World Cup.

The All Whites are back on the biggest stage in international football for the first time since 2010 and are seeking their first-ever win at a World Cup.

The team's World Cup preparations have been thrown into chaos with all of their matches scheduled to be played in the US.

Iran's participation had appeared uncertain in the build-up to the tournament because of the war. They also moved their base camp from Tucson, Arizona, to Tijuana, Mexico, leaving them to travel internationally back to the US for each of their three group-stage matches.

The Iran squad must also arrive in the US on the day of their matches and depart the country within 24 hours, according to widespread reporting on the team's movements.

Iran will learn on Monday what sort of reception awaits them when they take to the pitch, although Los Angeles and its metropolitan area are home to the largest concentration of Iranians outside of Iran.

Iran are appearing at their fourth successive World Cup and seventh overall. They have won a group-stage match at each of the last two tournaments, beating Morocco 1-0 in 2018 and defeating Wales 2-0 in Qatar in 2022 with two stoppage-time goals. Yet progress to the knockout phase has remained elusive.

The All Whites are making their third finals appearance and are seeking their first win at a World Cup.

New Zealand's hopes are likely to rest heavily on captain Chris Wood, the country's all-time leading scorer, who underlined his importance during qualifying with successive hat-tricks against Samoa and Fiji.

This is just the third meeting between New Zealand and Iran and the first time the sides have met in a competitive fixture.

New Zealand haven't won a match since June 2025, when they beat Ivory Coast 1-0 in a friendly.

Liberato Cacace, Michael Boxall and Finn Surman are in New Zealand's starting lineup on Monday, while for Iran, Alireza Beiranvand, Milad Mohammadi and Shoja Khalilzadeh are set to start.

Where to watch Iran vs New Zealand?

Iran's fans can watch their opener on IRIB TV3, with the game kicking off at 4:30am local time on Tuesday morning.

TVNZ will broadcast the game and viewers in the United Kingdom and the United States can watch it on the BBC and Fox, respectively.