Iran head coach Carlos Queiroz revealed that his players are free to protest at the World Cup as long as it’s within the rules of the tournament. According to the rights advocacy HRANA news agency, during the course of the previous two months of nationwide protests brought on by the death of 22-year-old Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini while in the care of the “morality police,” 344 people have been killed and 15,280 have been imprisoned. Iran claimed that her death was the result of pre-existing problems and charged its adversaries with inciting the protests to topple the government. The demonstrations have caused the clerical establishment, which has been in power for more than 40 years, to have a crisis of legitimacy.
“Iran resembles your nation completely. It abides by the FIFA rules and the spirit of the game. In football, that is how you express yourself. Everyone has the right to self-expression,” Iran head coach Carlos Queiroz said. “In the games, you guys stoop to your knees. Iran is no different from other countries in that some people agree with it while others do not. The players’ only thought is to battle for their desire to advance to the second round, therefore it is absurd to imagine that the national team is experiencing any problems of such nature.”
Iran’s players were heavily criticized on Twitter in recent days for meeting with Iranian leaders prior to their departure for Doha, where they trained for the first time on Tuesday. When they played two warm-up internationals in September, covering up their national team badge was perceived as a sign of support for the protests. Queiroz asserts that they are permitted to protest at the World Cup as long as they do it in accordance with the rules of the competition and the “spirit of the game.” But when Queiroz was questioned about being a representative of a country that restricts women’s rights, he reacted angrily and walked out of the press conference.
For more football news, click here
