Reports circulated about Saudi Arabia refusing to grant a visa to Younis Mahmoud, Deputy President of the Iraqi Football Federation, which was seen as an attempt to prevent him from supporting his national team during the Asian playoff qualifying for the 2026 World Cup.

Saudi Arabia is hosting the Asian playoff matches, where the “Green” team will face the Iraqi team next Tuesday at King Abdullah Sports City Stadium, in the second round.

The Saudi team enters the match aiming to secure qualification after winning the first round against Indonesia (3-2), while Iraq will face Indonesia three days before their match with Saudi Arabia.

Saudi media personality Batal Al-Qaws raised the issue on his program “Fi Al-Marma,” to which media figure Adel Al-Batti responded clearly: “If Younis Mahmoud wanted to enter Saudi Arabia, the doors are open, and he can obtain the visa electronically within one minute. The issue is related to an internal conflict between Adnan Dirjal and Younis Mahmoud over the presidency of the Iraqi Federation, and the Kingdom has no relation to it.”

Meanwhile, Riyadh Hadi, a member of the Iraqi Football Federation’s media office, denied the circulated news, confirming that Younis Mahmoud did not intend to accompany the team at all, having apologized for attending the matches against Saudi Arabia and Indonesia.

The issue recalled the ongoing tension between Younis Mahmoud and the Saudi sports community since the Gulf Cup 26, when the player made a sarcastic remark about Saudi Arabia’s chances in the tournament, which caused widespread resentment and calls for his apology.

However, Mahmoud refused to apologize, saying: “I did not mean to offend; it was just a joke.”

The disputes between the two sides are not new, dating back to the 2007 Asian Cup finals when Iraq won the title and Younis received the best player award, while Yasser Al-Qahtani openly questioned his merit, sarcastically saying: “I can polish the trophy and send it to him as a gift.”

Despite the rising tension, Gulf analysts called for prioritizing sportsmanship and maintaining brotherly relations between peoples, stressing that such statements should be taken in their sporting context away from exaggerations that could open the door to unjustified conflicts.

Source: “Saudi media outlets”