Iran suggests men’s soccer team will skip World Cup after several in women’s team defect

The head of the Iranian Football Federation on Tuesday cast further doubt on his country’s participation in this summer’s World Cup, alleging that women playing in the Asian Cup in Australia had been coerced into defecting.

“If the World Cup is like this, who in their right mind would send their national team to a place like this?” Mehdi Taj asked on Iranian state television.

The men’s World Cup will be hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada, but Iran is scheduled to play all three group games in the United States, two in Los Angeles and one in Seattle.

Its participation has been in doubt since the United States and Israel started their attacks last month on Iran, which launched reprisals.

On Tuesday, at the Women’s Asian Cup in Australia, players from Iran’s team claimed asylum.

Five players, including captain Zahra Ghanbari, slipped away from the team hotel under the cover of darkness to claim sanctuary from Australian officials, the Australian government announced. At least two more team members applied to stay later in the day, according to local media.

Some of the players had been branded “wartime traitors” by Iranian state television after remaining silent during the national anthem before their opening loss to South Korea.

Every player saluted and sang the anthem before the next two group games. Iran lost both those matches and was eliminated after a defeat to the Philippines on Sunday.

Taj said the players had done their part during the anthem.

“Our women’s national team sang the national anthem and gave the military salute,” he said. He blamed US President Donald Trump for the incident.

“The US president himself… tweeted two tweets about a women’s team [saying]  ‘we welcome them and that they should become refugees.'”

“He threatened Australia that ‘if you don’t grant them asylum, I will give them asylum in the US,'” Taj added. “How could one be optimistic about the World Cup that is supposed to be held in America?”

Taj claimed without evidence that the five women players had been kidnapped and the team had been obstructed as it tried to leave Australia.

“After the game, unfortunately, the Australian police came and intervened, removing one or two of the players from the hotel, according to the news we have.”

He also made reference to an alleged airstrike on a school in Minab at the start of the war, which Iran has blamed on Israel and the US.

“They martyred our girls in Minab, 160 of them, and in this incident they are taking our girls hostage,” Taj said. “They did a terrible thing. Last night, some people came and lay down in front of the car they were driving to the airport.”

Crowds had gathered outside the Gold Coast stadium for the game against Philippines, banging drums and shouting “regime change for Iran,” an AFP reporter saw. Supporters surrounded the Iranian team bus, chanting “let them go” and “save our girls.”

Taj said that at the airport, the squad had trouble boarding their flight.

“They completely blocked them at the gate and told everyone to become refugees.”

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.