Iranians in L.A. split on war as World Cup plays

Iran’s World – In West Los Angeles, Meymuni Cafe stayed open for Iran’s 2026 World Cup match against New Zealand—drawing a mix of fans who see the team as national pride and others who associate it with politics, amid a charged backdrop of months of war launched by the U.S.

When the first goal went in, cheers erupted at Meymuni Cafe in the West Los Angeles corridor that anchors one of the city’s largest Iranian communities. About 35 minutes into Iran’s 2026 World Cup game against New Zealand on Monday evening, the room surged with sound.

Parvin. 76. who declined to provide her last name. wiped tears from her cheeks and pointed at a new large flat-screen looming overhead. She sat perched on a bench at the very front of the room. shrieking at moments and nudging her sister to look when the play turned. Her T-shirt—faded. white. and more than 50 years old—had been bought when she attended the 1974 Asian Games in Tehran. one of the last times Iran could host an international soccer tournament.

“I was young then and would just meet boys and drink,” Parvin said. “This game is more important. That’s my country, it’s my motherland. I want the children of my country to be happy.”

Across town at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, the match carried the weight of a far larger conflict. The highly charged game was set against a months-long war with Iran launched by the U.S. and Israel in February, and it drew strong attendance of L.A. Iranians inside the stadium and protests outside. Los Angeles is home to the largest population of Iranians outside of Iran.

The division showed up in the cafe too, not in slogans alone but in what people chose to cheer.

Parvin’s sister supported New Zealand. She said she feels Iran’s team and its players “belong to the government.”

At Meymuni Cafe, dozens had settled into seats newly arranged in rows for the watch party. People slurped the cafe’s signature lavashak smoothie—a tart mixture including peaches, various berries and pomegranate molasses—and munched on slow-cooked lamb over nachos with melty Armenian string cheese.

The owner and staff said they wanted the space to be a gathering point for Iranian Angelenos. and they tried to keep it politically neutral. Some in the diaspora are fearful of being openly associated with one side or another of the bitter divide over the U.S.’s military action. Even so, tension was inevitable. In and around the stadium. some people protested or avoided the game altogether. and inside the stands. arguments and altercations broke out—according to footage posted on social media.

In the stadium, a group of fans booed and turned their backs during the national anthem, waving U.S. and Israeli flags and Iran’s pre-1979 revolution flag emblazoned with a lion and a rising sun despite FIFA’s ban. Some Palestinian flags fluttered in the crowd.

At the cafe watch party. some people draped the flag over their shoulders or wore pins. hats. or shirts carrying the lion-and-sun emblem tied to a campaign to return to a monarchy and install Reza Pahlavi—exiled former crown prince and son of the late shah—as Iran’s leader. When New Zealand scored first, a handful of attendees erupted in cheers. When Iran scored. an employee jumping and clapping behind the counter led a chant in Farsi of “long live the Shah.”.

Laila Emamjoneh, 24, sat beside her sister and brother-in-law and said she was startled by the noise that followed New Zealand’s goal among a group of mostly Iranians. She is half Iranian and half Mexican and said she had barely followed either team, but wanted to be around her people for the game.

“It’s obviously very intense with everything going on, but I still wanted to be around Persian people,” Emamjoneh said. She said her dad often voices his sadness at the plight of Iranian people back home.

The cafe’s owner, Shaheen Ferdowsi, typically closes on Mondays. He decided to keep it open anyway for the match, even as other Iranian-owned businesses rejected the idea. Ferdowsi said he left the watch party in the hands of his employees because his mother had managed to snag tickets to the actual game for their family.

He said he was excited to be surrounded by thousands rooting for the Iran team.

“Anywhere there’s a lot of Iranians there’s going to be chaos,” Ferdowsi said.

After the game, he said he and his family had been “ecstatic all night.”

Sarah Irani, 48, wore tri-color green, red, and white ribbons in her hair and said Meymuni offered a space that felt different from some older Iranian-owned businesses in Westwood, nicknamed Tehrangeles. She described it as more open and less combative.

“It has a younger, more welcoming vibe and it feels very inclusive and a place to share happiness and not to nitpick and tear anyone apart,” Irani said.

Iran rallied late in a 2-2 draw with New Zealand. At the end, Parvin shook her head in frustration and pointed to the obstacles she believes have held the team back.

Parvin said the team was set back by having to relocate its base camp from Arizona to Tijuana. struggling to get its full staff into the U.S. amid visa scrutiny. and fielding the suggestion from President Trump that the team wouldn’t be safe if it chose to play. She said the players likely felt they couldn’t respond as forcefully. feeling—like many new immigrants to the U.S.—that they had to behave.

“They had to try so hard. Emotionally they aren’t 100% ready,” Parvin said. “It’s not right.”

Inside the cafe, the cheering never quite stopped, even when people argued about what the team represented. One goal sparked tears and chants; a later one triggered frustration. For a community watching through a screen on a bench out front. the World Cup was never only a match—it was a mirror of loyalties. fears. and hope carried all the way from Tehran to West Los Angeles.

Iran World Cup 2026 Meymuni Cafe West Los Angeles SoFi Stadium Inglewood Iranian diaspora U.S. Israel war with Iran FIFA ban lion and sun flag Reza Pahlavi