Russia and Iran to play friendly football match in September

The national football teams of Russia and Iran will play a friendly match on September 29 in Kazan, the capital of the Russian republic of Tatarstan, the Russian Football Union’s (RFU) press office reported on Friday.

The match will be played at the over 45,000-seat capacity AK Bars Arena in Kazan.

Information about the start of the game and ticket sales will be disclosed later, the RFU press office added.

Russia and Iran have played against each other four times before - all exhibition matches. In their most recent encounter in Russia’s Volgograd in October 2025 the hosts defeated the Iranian team 2-1. The other three matches ended in two draws and one Iranian win.

Iran is currently 22nd in the FIFA World Rankings while Russia stands at 35th. Earlier this summer, the Iranian national football team played at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, co-hosted by the U.S., Mexico and Canada, but failed to clear the group stage of the championship.