{"id":645440,"date":"2026-05-03T17:00:08","date_gmt":"2026-05-03T17:00:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/645440\/"},"modified":"2026-05-03T17:00:08","modified_gmt":"2026-05-03T17:00:08","slug":"iranian-american-soccer-fans-are-torn-between-pride-and-protest-as-the-world-cup-nears","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/645440\/","title":{"rendered":"Iranian American soccer fans are torn between pride and protest as the World Cup nears"},"content":{"rendered":"

STONY BROOK, N.Y. (AP) \u2014 With Iran qualifying for the World Cup<\/a> , Arad Ershad had visions of splurging on flights and tickets<\/a> to attend one of the team\u2019s upcoming first-round matches in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n

That changed when Ershad, a New York graduate student who grew up in Tehran, saw how many of the players he had adored since childhood failed to speak out following its theocratic leadership\u2019s deadly crackdown<\/a> on protesters in January.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt feels so bad that I do not want them to succeed. They were like my icons, my legends,\u201d he lamented during a recent pickup soccer game on Long Island. \u201cI know playing a World Cup is the biggest thing a soccer player can achieve in his life, but how can you just be silent?\u201d<\/p>\n

Ershad is one of many diehard soccer fans in the Iranian diaspora with conflicting emotions as Team Melli \u2014 the Persian nickname for Iran\u2019s national squad \u2014 prepares for its seventh World Cup. Iran is set to begin its campaign against New Zealand on June 15 near Los Angeles, a region that\u2019s home to the largest Iranian community<\/a> outside of Iran, including many who fled the 1979 Islamic Revolution.<\/p>\n

Some view the men\u2019s team as complicit in whitewashing the Iranian government\u2019s repression and can\u2019t bear to watch the competition. Others plan to attend Iran\u2019s games<\/a> to show their love for the country and sport, but bearing signs of protest. Still others say they\u2019ll set politics aside and just enjoy seeing Iran compete on soccer\u2019s biggest stage.<\/p>\n

All of this is assuming the team actually takes part, which Iranian officials called into question<\/a> because of the country\u2019s war with the United States and Israel<\/a> . Iranian soccer officials recently met<\/a> with the head of FIFA, international soccer\u2019s governing body, who has insisted that Iran stick to the schedule.<\/p>\n

The Iranian team often finds itself unable to avoid political issues. Before a recent match in Turkey, players held small backpacks<\/a> honoring the Iranian children who were killed in a U.S. missile strike on an elementary school<\/a> \u2014 a move Iranian American fans said showed their allegiance to the government and the political pressure it places on them.<\/p>\n

Iranian athletes have faced serious consequences for speaking out. In 2022, a prominent former member of the national team was arrested for allegedly protesting<\/a> against the country\u2019s leadership. This year, star striker Sardar Azmoun wasn\u2019t selected for World Cup warmup games, reportedly because of a social media post that angered the authorities<\/a> .<\/p>\n

Nader Adeli, who manages Iranian American club team Arya FC\u2019s over-60 squad in Los Angeles, is worried the war might keep Iran from attending the World Cup.<\/p>\n

Last month, U.S. President Donald Trump discouraged<\/a> the Iranian team from taking part, citing safety concerns. In response, Iran asked to move its matches to Mexico, which is co-hosting the event along with the U.S. and Canada, though the head of FIFA<\/a> has repeatedly rejected such a move.<\/p>\n

Adeli, who didn\u2019t win the ticket lottery to attend one of Iran\u2019s two Los Angeles-area matches, said the World Cup should be a moment to enjoy the sport without outside distractions.<\/p>\n

But with war raging, he doesn\u2019t think the team will travel. And if it does, he doubts the players would be able to fully focus on competing.<\/p>\n

\u201cSports should never become a political issue,\u201d he said. \u201cAs people, we have nothing against any Americans, we have nothing against any Iranians. It is just the governments.\u201d<\/p>\n

Iran\u2019s women\u2019s team made headlines last month<\/a> when several members didn\u2019t sing along to the country\u2019s national anthem before their opening match at the Women\u2019s Asian Cup in Australia.<\/p>\n

Although they sang it before Iran\u2019s next two fixtures, some commenters saw their initial silence as a protest against their government \u2014 though others saw it as a display of mourning about the war. The team and players \u2014 two of whom accepted asylum offers<\/a> to remain in Australia \u2014 didn\u2019t comment on the matter.<\/p>\n

Shiva Amini, who used to play for the national team but now lives in New York City, is among the Iranian ex-pats calling on the Trump administration not to grant visas to the men\u2019s team to play in the World Cup.<\/p>\n

The 36-year-old player, who left Iran in 2017 after being photographed not wearing a headscarf while in Europe, said many Iranians soured on the men\u2019s squad during the 2022 World Cup, when players stayed silent as Iran was roiled by street demonstrations over the country\u2019s mandatory headscarf laws following the death of Mahsa Amini<\/a> .<\/p>\n

\u201cThey had a big platform, and instead of talking about that, they were laughing, they were so happy, and it was honestly a slap on the face,\u201d she said. \u201cSo those are not the Iranian national soccer team. Those are the regime\u2019s national soccer team.\u201d<\/p>\n

The few players who have spoken out paid dearly, Amini acknowledged, including Amir Nasr-Azadani, who faces years behind bars for his involvement in the 2022 protests.<\/p>\n

Azmoun, the Dubai-based star striker who played for Iran\u2019s past two World Cup teams, wasn\u2019t picked to play in the team\u2019s warmups for this year\u2019s tournament, reportedly because he posted a photo on social media of himself greeting United Arab Emirates political leaders.<\/p>\n

Masoud Ahmadi, a 62-year-old interior designer who plays for another largely Iranian American over-60 club team, Sina FC, said he\u2019s trying to get a ticket to see Iran play. If he does, he said he\u2019ll take a stand against the Iranian leadership by carrying the country\u2019s lion-and-sun flag, which predates the Islamic Revolution.<\/p>\n

Ahmadi said he was detained in Iran as a teenager before he fled to Turkey on foot. The U.S. granted him political asylum.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re going to definitely raise our voice,\u201d said Ahmadi, who is proud of his Iranian heritage but critical of the men\u2019s squad. \u201cThis team is not an Iranian people\u2019s team. This is a government team.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sasan Sadri, who manages the team, said if he scores a ticket, he\u2019ll try to wear a shirt calling for leadership change in Iran.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs my countrymen, I like them to achieve,\u201d he said. \u201cI don\u2019t support the regime, but soccer is soccer.\u201d<\/p>\n

As for Ershad, the New York grad student, he plans to support the Iranian team if the government is overthrown before the tournament starts. If not, he\u2019ll back soccer great Cristiano Ronaldo\u2019s side to win it all.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s so hard to not cheer for your national team, but let\u2019s go Portugal,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

Taxin reported from Irvine, California.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"STONY BROOK, N.Y. (AP) \u2014 With Iran qualifying for the World Cup , Arad Ershad had visions of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":645441,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[440],"tags":[49,48,561,82],"class_list":["post-645440","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-soccer","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-soccer","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/645440","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=645440"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/645440\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/645441"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=645440"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=645440"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=645440"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}