The German Foreign Office does not expect Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to choose to attend the Iranian national soccer team's matches during the 2006 World Cup in Germany, Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said at a media event on Wednesday night.

Ahmadinejad, who often attends Iranian national team matches, called for Israel to be "wiped off the map" and repeatedly denied that the Holocaust happened.

A number of religious groups and politicians have called on the federal government to deny Ahmadinejad a visa, should he decide to come to Germany for the Cup, which runs from June 9 to July 9.

There is a chance Ahmadinejad could watch the Iranian team play in Nuremberg, a city with a notorious Nazi past. Whether or not he comes to Germany, far-right extremists have already also promised to lend their vocal support to the Iran team as a way of showing approval for the Iranian president's statements.

German Interior Minister Wolfgang Schäuble previously said Ahmadinejad would be allowed to come to the World Cup, like any other head of state, since Germany wanted to be a good host.