ESPN honors Iran's World Cup elimination as 'remarkable' despite zero wins in three matches

Soccer fans talk to OutKick outside the Iran-Egypt World Cup group match in Seattle on Friday night as the city’s Pride celebrations become a point of controversy for the two nations competing.

Find someone who loves you the way ESPN loves Iran.

Iran played a pretty mediocre World Cup, which ended Saturday with its elimination from the tournament in a fairly big letdown.

ESPN, wanting to honor Iran, put out a post on the team's exit.

Iran's apparent second goal sparks celebration before video review erases crucial World Cup breakthrough against Egypt. (Matt McNulty - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)

To them, failing to make the knockout stage amounted to a "remarkable" tournament run.

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"Iran are eliminated from the World Cup after a remarkable tournament run," ESPN FC posted Saturday, championing a team that didn't win a single match.

Not everyone shared ESPN's take.

One fan wrote, "Remarkable might be a stretch. They didn't win any games and didn't advance in a format where 32 of 48 did advance. They weren't awful by any means, but they weren't spectacular either."

"I have played football (not soccer), baseball, and basket[ball] in my life. I would have the same results out there and they did (0 wins)," another reaction read.

The Iranian camp certainly didn't see it that way.

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Captain Mehdi Taremi called the tournament "a disaster," while head coach Amir Ghalenoei argued his squad was "the most oppressed team in the whole World Cup" because of the travel and logistical issues it faced.

After the heartbreaking exit, Iran's official team statement added, "Respect cannot be won without fair play."

No matches won. Three grueling draws against Belgium, New Zealand and Egypt left Iran undefeated but mercilessly eliminated.

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Iran's dream second goal vanishes as VAR crushes celebrations in dramatic World Cup clash with Egypt. (Photo by Matt McNulty - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images) ((Photo by Matt McNulty - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images))

An Iran fan proudly waves their flag during the Egypt vs. IR Iran 2026 World Cup match. (Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA/Getty Images)

Iran thought it had found a late winner on Friday before VAR ruled the goal offside, and the match ended in a 1-1 draw with Egypt, coinciding with Seattle's Pride Match and making for an eventful day of World Cup storylines.

Fox News Digital/OutKick attended the match, capturing reactions from all sides.

On Saturday, a late equalizer elsewhere in the group mathematically crushed Iran's hopes, sending the team home after a World Cup run that was ultimately unremarkable.

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Alejandro Avila is a longtime writer at OutKick, living in Southern California.