Richarlison has responded after a fake quote suggested he would refuse to play at the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the United States.
The Tottenham Hotspur forward was falsely quoted on social media during discussions surrounding the conflict involving Iran .
A viral post claimed the Brazil international would boycott the tournament unless the situation changed.
Richarlison has now publicly rejected the claim and called the reports fake.
The false claim spread widely on X, where a post attributed the following statement to the Brazil forward.
"I refuse to play the World Cup in the United States if they don't stop this war against Iran."
Richarlison quickly addressed the situation and made clear the quote was fabricated.
"Just to be clear, because the fake news has gone too far: I never made that statement," he wrote.
"Although I am against any kind of war and conflict, I never said I wouldn't play for the Brazilian national team at the World Cup.
"I hope everyone who shared this lie takes it back and deletes their posts."
The Tottenham forward has been a regular part of Brazil's national team squad in recent years and remains focused on football ahead of the 2026 tournament.
Photo by Shaun Brooks – CameraSport via Getty Images
Iran's potential participation in the World Cup has also been discussed amid rising tensions in the region.
The country qualified for the tournament and were drawn in Group G alongside Belgium , Egypt and New Zealand . If they compete, it would represent Iran's fourth consecutive World Cup appearance.
However, Iran were notably absent from a recent FIFA planning meeting involving participating nations, raising questions about whether the team would travel to the United States for the tournament.
When asked about Iran's involvement, United States President Donald Trump said he was unconcerned .
"I really don't care," Trump said. "I think Iran is a very badly defeated country. They're running on fumes."
FIFA has not made any official change to the list of qualified teams, with Iran still scheduled to compete in the 2026 World Cup.
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