A special envoy for Washington has revealed his pressure campaign targeting FIFA to ditch the Islamic Republic Italian officials have rebuked a US proposal for their national football team to replace Iran at the upcoming FIFA World Cup. Italy lost the chance to participate at the World Cup for a third successive time after a humiliating penalty shootout defeat to Bosnia and Herzegovina in a playoff last month, triggering widespread backlash at home and leading to the resignation of the head of the national football federation. However, an American proposal to give Italy Iran’s spot at the World Cup, which will be co-hosted by the US, Canada, and Mexico this summer, sparked indignation in Rome.…