The Iranian team has a fine line between Express support for protesters back home and risking serious repercussions from the regime for doing so. They have been criticized for not being more outspoken about the regime’s violent suppression of dissent on the world stage The Associated Press reported. Some also called on Ezzat Allah for not mentioning Sammak’s death at the hands of the security forces.
The team also faced criticism early on for meeting and deferring to President Ebrahim Raisi before they traveled to Qatar to participate in the World Cup. But during the competition, the players appeared to cautiously express their solidarity with the protesters back home.
Prior to his first match, team captain Ehsan Hajsafi acknowledged the oppression of Iranians back home, saying that “the conditions in our country are not well.”
“We are here, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be their voice or we shouldn’t respect them,” he said.
The teammates also remained silent as Iran’s national anthem was played in their first match against England, in what many interpreted as a show of support for the protesters.
They were later threatened by members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps who said that their families would face “violence and torture” if they participated in any political protest against the government. mentionedQuoting an anonymous source.
The team joined in singing the national anthems in their other two matches against Wales and then the United States.
