At Iran’s World Cup opening game, a few Iranian fans expressed their solidarity with the protests in their home country. Before and during the game against England on Monday, supporters with Iranian shirts and the slogan “Women, Life, Freedom” were seen at the Khalifa International Stadium. The Iranian government killed women and children, said a fan who had traveled from Iran and declined to give his name. The protests deserved support. On his Iran jersey he bore the name of former Bundesliga professional Ali Karimi. The 44-year-old had shown solidarity with the protests. Others did not want to comment. “No comment,” said a young fan when asked about the protests in Iran. He wore a Leverkusen shirt worn by Iranian striker Sardar Azmoun.
World Cup 2022: Iran’s captain expresses condolences to victims
Iranian captain Ehsan Hajsafi on Sunday expressed his condolences to the grieving families of the victims in Iran. The team has to accept that the conditions in the country are not good and the people are not happy, he was quoted in the media as saying. The players are aware of that. According to estimates by human rights activists, more than 400 people have been killed in the nationwide protests in Iran so far. Iranian striker Mehdi Taremi said before the tournament that the team in Qatar did not want to be influenced by the protests at home. “We also have other responsibilities towards Iranian society, but here our focus is on football,” he said.
Iran’s footballers remain silent during the anthem
The footballers of the Iranian national team, meanwhile, did not sing their national anthem before their World Cup opening game against England. As the Iranian anthem was played at the stadium in Doha, the players remained silent as a sign of solidarity with government critics back home. Iran national team captain Alireza Jahanbakhsh said before the start of the World Cup in Qatar that the team would decide “together” whether or not to sing the national anthem as a sign of support for the victims of the repression of the protests. During the anthem, television images briefly showed a spectator wearing a white headscarf in the stands applauding the silent players while tears streamed down her face. A placard reading “Woman, Life, Freedom” in English, the protest movement’s slogan, was briefly displayed in the stands area for Iranian fans.