U.S. Homeland Security Secretary says he did a ‘happy dance’ after Iran knocked out of World Cup

A leading U.S. politician in the Trump administration says he did a “happy dance” and “sung a song or two” to celebrate Iran’s exit from the World Cup.

Iran was knocked out of the World Cup after drawing all three of its group games, concluding in a 1-1 draw against Egypt which saw Shojae Khalilzadeh’s injury-time goal ruled out by VAR for a tight offside call.

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin welcomed that outcome when addressing reporters during a World Cup briefing at the government’s Special Event Coordination Center on Monday. “I’m just glad they’re done, and they’re not coming back,” Mullin said, as reported by Sports Business Journal. “I was so happy when we were able to pull their visas and said they could leave the U.S. soil, and I might’ve sung a song or two or maybe even danced a happy dance.”

Mullin added he was “very happy they’re going back because there wasn’t a single team that we dealt with more than them.”

The comments only add to Mullin’s ongoing rift with the Iranian team, with him having previously claimed that members of the traveling party had tried to sneak in a person with direct ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a group which has been designated by the U.S. as a terrorist organization. An official for the Iran Football Federation (FFIRI) called that accusation “false, fabricated and entirely baseless.”

“Iranians are used to the mistreatment and lies of U.S. officials, so no one in Iran is surprised by these hostile remarks,” an FFIRI official, reacting to Mullin’s new public comments, said in a statement to The Athletic.

“These remarks once again demonstrate that U.S. officials have no commitment to international law or the principles expected of a host nation capable of organizing a global sporting event.

“The fact that he openly celebrates Iran’s elimination says far more about him than it does about our team. It reflects a level of pettiness that cannot even tolerate the presence of a football team competing on the world’s biggest stage.

“After our match against New Zealand, our head coach said that the United States did not want Iran to remain in this tournament because of the inhumane and unprofessional treatment our team experienced. These latest comments only reinforce that belief.”

Iran has been complaining about their treatment since the start of the World Cup. The team had to change its training base from Tucson, Arizona to Tijuana, Mexico, and was only allowed to enter the U.S. the day before its first two matches, while several staff members were denied visas to cross the border. Iran was required to leave the U.S. after the final whistle for all three games, against their wishes.

Mullin rejected that Iran had any legitimate complaints, citing the proximity of Tijuana to Los Angeles, the location of their first two games. He also said Customs and Border Protection officers screened the players before boarding their flights to assuage their concerns about being interrogated at U.S. customs.

Striker Mehdi Taremi and coach Saeid Alhoei were questioned by U.S. officials at LAX after the New Zealand game and in Tijuana before travelling to Seattle.

Mullin did not identify any specific security concerns for demanding Iran depart immediately after games. “That was just an agreement we had — to just go ahead and let them go,” he said.

Mullin also reiterated his previous statements that more than half of Iran’s support staff were denied visas. Last Sunday, ahead of Iran’s match with Belgium, Mullin told Fox News how teams usually travel in a group of 120. “We accepted 53 coming in,” he said of Iran. “The rest all had direct ties to the IRGC and aren’t their normal travelling group.
“So these games that Iran plays makes them an adversary that you can’t trust,” he said, adding that “no-one knows that better” than President Donald Trump. “Everything that we do will be verified and not assumed,” Mullin said. Iran called that accusation “false, fabricated and entirely baseless.”

In response to Mullin’s latest comments, the FFIRI official added: “When they kill 168 children and lie to the whole world about it, nothing this person says is surprising to any of us.”

This is a reference to the air strike on Shajareh Tayyebeh Elementary School in Minab, Iran, on February 28, 2026 — the first day of the U.S.-Iran conflict — which killed 168 children, according to the Iranian foreign ministry.

Iran’s players have been marking the event through 168 pin badges and on social media.

The New York Times, citing U.S. officials and others familiar with the preliminary findings, reported that an ongoing military investigation had determined the U.S. was responsible for the deadly missile strike. Neither President Trump nor the U.S. government has confirmed that report.