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Iran came from behind twice to record an entertaining 2-2 draw with New Zealand in Group G at the 2026 World Cup.
Eli Just twice gave his side the lead, but the Iranians twice equalised, through Ramin Rezaeian's flick and Mohammad Mohebi's fine header.
Fans have been banned from bringing pre-revolutionary Iran flags into World Cup stadiums after a last-minute hearing upheld the ban in Los Angeles earlier today.
GO FURTHER
Pre-revolutionary flags spotted, anthem booed at Iran’s World Cup opener
For their second game of this World Cup, Iran are up against Belgium.
They kick off at 3pm ET, 12pm (noon) PT on Sunday, 21 June in Los Angeles.
Next up for New Zealand at this World Cup is another chance to land a first World Cup win against another team in search of the same achievement, Egypt.
That’s on Sunday, 21 June at 9pm ET, 6pm PT in Vancouver, Canada.
Missed today's match and want to catch up on the big talking points?
Want to know all about New Zealand scorer Elijah Just?
And how well did both sides play?
We have the perfect article for you — dive in to the latest edition of The Briefing on The Athletic's link below.
GO FURTHER
Iran plays in the World Cup on U.S. soil, comes back twice to draw against New Zealand
Per Opta, New Zealand have recorded a draw in each of their last four World Cup matches, after losing all their three games in the tournament prior to that span.
Indeed, they were the only undefeated team at the 2010 World Cup, exiting the group stage on three points from their three draws.
Champions Spain lost against Switzerland in their group.
Iran have avoided defeat in their opening match of three of their last four World Cup tournaments (one win, two draws).
They lost only against England, 6-2, in their opening game of their 2022 campaign.
Today is also the third time in their last four FA World Cup matches that Iran have scored more than one goal.
They had done so only once in all their 15 games in the tournament beforehand.
Thanks to Opta for those figures.
New Zealand's Chris Wood today became just the third player to assist multiple goals for a single teammate (Elijah Just) in a World Cup match across the last three tournaments.
The previous two were Ivan Perisic for Andrej Kramaric in 2022 (for Croatia vs Canada), and Joao Felix for Gonçalo Ramos in 2022 (Portugal vs Switzerland).
Meanwhile, Ramin Rezaeian (one goal and one assist today) has become the first player to score and assist in a World Cup match for Iran.
Eli Just is incredibly unlucky to miss out on the official Player of the Match award, but Ramin Rezaeian turned in a top-drawer performance too.
He scored a smart goal and was Iran's best player by some distance. It was a true all-action showing from the right wing-back, creating chances and snapping into tackles.
Even if his strange shirt-over-face celebration was a little strange.
Iran's Ramin Rezaeian, when asked about his goal celebration — putting his shirt over his face — said it was “not political” but declined to elaborate on the meaning.
He was also asked about boos during the national anthem. Rezaeian said he was not here to talk about politics, and that the reaction to the anthem was “none of your business”.
💬 “Actually, we are here to answer questions (about) football, so you have to know, my people in Iran are so great, so good in everything.
“Everyone in the world now knows about my people. If there are any problems between us, it's our business, it's none of your business.
“I respect you but this is something between us and we're going to solve it, don't worry.”
It feels really harsh that New Zealand's Elijah Just isn't the man holding the fancy Player of the Match award after that performance.
He scored two really good goals to twice give his side the lead and was a thorn in Iran's side throughout the match.
The 26-year-old was positive in his attacking play and got stuck into his fair of duels on the ground and in the air.
Just might have gone without reward but he will be a hero right now back in his home country.
Like Ramin Rezaeian, Eli Just is also unsatisfied with the draw.
He says New Zealand are “really disappointed” to not get all three points but there are still “a lot of positives” to take from tonight.
New Zealand’s double goalscorer has been speaking to the media after the match — here’s what he had to say about his team-mate, striker Chris Wood.
💬 “He (Wood) was incredible. He was such a strong platform for us today. He got us out of a lot of trouble when we needed to go long and he’s our captain, our big player, that’s what we expect.
“Everybody is so happy that he is fit and ready to go.”
Now, let's hear from New Zealand goalscorer Eli Just…
Iran have gone through plenty of off-field turmoil to even reach this World Cup.
They can be pleased with that performance, where they let their football do the talking to take home a deserved draw.
With a population of more than five million, New Zealand are not as small as Cape Verde or Curacao, but they are still one of the tournament’s minnows.
A solid showing from all three of those nations in their first group games!
That’s a tough draw for New Zealand, who will feel hard done by to have come pretty close to their first ever World Cup win.
They held their own and scored two high-quality goals — so there is plenty to feel proud of.
It has been a tournament for imitating celebrations so far.
We had iconic wrestler John Cena's ‘you can't see me’ gesture yesterday and then Vince McMahon's billionaire strut — that was popularised further by MMA fighter Conor McGregor — earlier today from Egypt's Emam Ashour.
A move away from WWE to the NBA from Mohammad Mohebi who copied LaMelo Ball's celebration after equalising for Iran in the second half.
Great fun to see the crossovers across different sports!
Bang in the corner of the net from Mohebbi, placement does not get any better than this!
Mohammad Mohebi celebrates bringing Iran level — a great finish with a header off the post.
That was about as satisfying as headers come!
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