On 1 June 2014, he was included in Iran's 2014 FIFA World Cup squad by Carlos Queiroz. On 16 June 2014, Haghighi started in Iran's opening match in the World Cup against Nigeria. With a goalless draw, Haghighi became the first Iranian goalkeeper to achieve a clean sheet at a FIFA World Cup. He also started Iran's next two matches in the World Cup against Argentina and Bosnia and Herzegovina. He showed a good performance in the Argentina match where he saved shots from Lionel Messi, Gonzalo Higuaín and Sergio Agüero. He conceded the only goal of the match in the 91st minute when Lionel Messi dribbled inside and curled a left-footed shot past the outstretched hands of Haghighi. In Iran's next and final match of the tournament, Haghighi conceded goals from Bosnia and Herzegovina strikers, where Iran was eliminated from the 2014 FIFA World Cup in the group stages after a 3–1 defeat.