Iran's Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said that France, England and the USA's elimination from the World Cup was what they deserved after they backed new sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program that they fear is aimed at making a bomb, which Tehran denies.

"Whatever we witness today in the international political arena has been identically manifested in the 19th tournament of the World Cup,” Mottaki said as quoted Iran’s official news agency IRNA. "Those countries which played a key role in imposing new sanctions against Iran — like England, America and France — were all eliminated in the preliminary phases.

Brazil, which reached the quarterfinals with a win over Chile, voted against the sanctions. Iran reached the last World Cup but finished at the bottom of its qualifying group for South Africa 2010.