DOHA, Qatar — Iranian media grilled U.S. men’s national team head coach Gregg Berhalter and midfielder Tyler Adams at an extremely political and often absurd news conference on the eve of a crucial World Cup showdown between the two nations.
Berhalter appeared to grow frustrated here at the Qatar National Convention Center as questions about U.S.-Iran relations and about U.S. Soccer’s alteration of the Iran flag in social media graphics piled up.
He reiterated multiple times that he and players “had no idea about what U.S. Soccer put out,” which the federation said was a statement in support of the Iranian women’s rights movement, and which it later took down amid backlash.