{"id":337034,"date":"2026-03-13T10:23:11","date_gmt":"2026-03-13T10:23:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/337034\/"},"modified":"2026-03-13T10:23:11","modified_gmt":"2026-03-13T10:23:11","slug":"iranian-footballers-gain-asylum-in-australia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/337034\/","title":{"rendered":"Iranian Footballers Gain Asylum in Australia"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Australian<\/a> government\u2019s decision to grant asylum to five members of the Iranian<\/a> women\u2019s national football team and one official shows the importance of protecting courageous athletes who stand up for what they believe.<\/p>\n

The six Iranians\u00a0sought protection<\/a> in Australia after their final match of the Asian Women’s Cup on March 8. In their opening match against South Korea on March 2, the players had, in protest, refrained from singing the national anthem of the Islamic Republic, prompting\u00a0Iran\u2019s state television<\/a> to call the squad \u201cwartime traitors<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

The women\u2019s team\u2019s silent protest echoed that of the\u00a0Iranian men’s team<\/a> at the 2022 Qatar World Cup, following Iranian authorities\u2019 repression of the \u201cWoman, Life, Freedom\u201d uprising after the\u00a0death in custody<\/a> of Jina Mahsa Amini. Australia has in the past\u00a0offered a safe haven<\/a> to members of Afghanistan\u2019s women\u2019s national football team after the Taliban banned all sport for women and girls.<\/p>\n

Since arriving in Australia, days before the conflict in Iran started on February 28 and the Iranian authorities\u2019 ongoing internet\u00a0shutdown<\/a>, players on the team have reported being\u00a0followed<\/a> by Iranian security and handlers. Iranian athletes have previously told Human Rights Watch how government political \u201cminders\u201d travel with the national team to monitor them.<\/p>\n

FIFPRO, the global players\u2019 union, has\u00a0said<\/a> the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and the F\u00e9d\u00e9ration Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) should have foreseen the risk and have done too little to protect the players. By permitting political officials who restrict women\u2019s rights to travel with delegations, the AFC and FIFA do not merely tolerate abuse, they provide it a platform beyond its country of origin.<\/p>\n

The implications extend beyond Australia. The 2026 FIFA Men\u2019s World Cup, to be held in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, comes amid a\u00a0rights crisis in the US<\/a> that includes a widespread immigration crackdown, threats to freedom of expression, and a wider slide towards authoritarianism.<\/p>\n

Before the World Cup begins in June, FIFA needs to put in place safeguarding protocols including a grievance mechanism, confidential referral pathways, and prohibitions on political minders in football federations who actually restrict the rights of the athletes they are accompanying. This will protect athletes who choose to exercise their right to protest human rights abuses.\u00a0<\/p>\n