{"id":232620,"date":"2026-03-11T04:27:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-11T04:27:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/11\/taken-hostage-irans-wild-claim-as-player-backflips-on-australia-asylum-forcing-panicked-move\/"},"modified":"2026-03-11T04:27:00","modified_gmt":"2026-03-11T04:27:00","slug":"taken-hostage-irans-wild-claim-as-player-backflips-on-australia-asylum-forcing-panicked-move","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/11\/taken-hostage-irans-wild-claim-as-player-backflips-on-australia-asylum-forcing-panicked-move\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Taken hostage\u2019: Iran\u2019s wild claim as player backflips on Australia asylum, forcing panicked move"},"content":{"rendered":"

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The head of the Iranian Football Federation on Tuesday cast further doubt on his country\u2019s participation in this summer\u2019s World Cup, saying women playing in the Asian Cup in Australia had been coerced into defecting and made \u201chostages\u201d \u2014 a claim strongly rejected by the Australian Government.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf the World Cup is like this, who in their right mind would send their national team to a place like this?\u201d Mehdi Taj asked on Iranian state television.<\/p>\n

Get all the latest football news, highlights and analysis delivered straight to your inbox with Fox Sports Sportmail. Sign up now!!!<\/a><\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

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Australian Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke confirmed on Wednesday morning that two more team members \u2014 a player and a support staffer \u2014 had accepted a humanitarian visa, joining five other players.<\/p>\n

However the latest player to seek asylum, 21-year-old Mohaddeseh Zolfi, has now backflipped on her decision asking the Iranian embassy to collect her.<\/p>\n

That forced the other players and staffer to be taken to another secure location because the Iranian embassy now knew where they were.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday, shortly after 10 o\u2019clock, I was advised that one of the two who had made the decision to stay last night had spoken to some of the teammates who had left,\u201d Burke told the House of Representatives during question time.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnfortunately, in making that decision, she\u2019d been advised by her teammates and coach to contact the Iranian embassy to get collected. My officials made sure that this was her decision, and every question you would want asked, was asked. As a result of that, it meant that the Iranian embassy now knew the location of where everybody was.<\/p>\n

\u201cI immediately gave the instruction for people to be moved, and that\u2019s been dealt with immediately.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Iran’s players salute during the national anthem before the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Australia 2026 football match between Iran and Philippines in Gold Coast on March 8, 2026. The son of the late shah urged Canberra on March 9 to protect the Iranian women’s football team, who were branded “wartime traitors” after refusing to sing the national anthem while playing in Australia. (Photo by AFP)<\/span>Source: AFP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Burke said that each person on the team was given a choice, though had to weigh up concerns for their own safety and that of their family at home.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor each of the individuals, they were emotional meetings,\u201d Burke said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey were emotional meetings for them, and for the people at home affairs and border force who were meeting with them.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t begin to imagine what people have been weighing up<\/p>\n

\u201cAustralia\u2019s objective here, was not to force people to make a particular decision. We\u2019re not that sort of nation.<\/p>\n

\u201cPossibly for the first time, these individuals were meeting a government that said the choice is up to you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Burke said that the Australian Federal Police had helped secure the two new defectors. Minders linked to the Iranian regime have attempted to usher the team home \u2014 and the majority will return to Iran.<\/p>\n

\u201cI made them the same offer that I had made the five players the night before, and that was … (a) humanitarian visa,\u201d Burke said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey both said that they did. I signed off on that, asked the department to start processing straightaway and, overnight, processing happened.\u201d<\/p>\n

The men\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n

Its participation has been in out doubt since the United States and Israel started their attacks on Iran which launched reprisals.<\/p>\n

On Tuesday, at the Women\u2019s Asian Cup in Australia, players from Iran\u2019s team claimed asylum.<\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

At least two more team members applied to stay later in the day, according to local media.<\/p>\n

Some of the players had been branded \u201cwartime traitors\u201d by Iranian state television after remaining silent during the national anthem before their opening loss to South Korea.<\/p>\n

Every player saluted and sang the anthem before the next two group games. Iran lost both those matches and were eliminated after a defeat to Philippines on Sunday.<\/p>\n

Taj said the players had done their part during the anthem.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur women\u2019s national team sang the national anthem and gave the military salute,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He blamed US President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe US president himself… tweeted two tweets about a women\u2019s team (saying) \u2018we welcome them and that they should become refugees\u2019.\u201d \u201cHe threatened Australia that \u2018if you don\u2019t grant them asylum, I will give them asylum in the US\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow could one be optimistic about the World Cup that is supposed to be held in America?\u201d<\/p>\n

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Iran’s players salute during the national anthem before the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Australia 2026 football match between Iran and Philippines.<\/span>Source: AFP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Trump weighs in on Iranian women’s team | 03:29<\/p>\n

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– \u2018Taken hostage\u2019 –<\/b><\/p>\n

Taj claimed the five women players had been kidnapped and the team had been obstructed as it tried to leave Australia.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter 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.\u201d <\/p>\n

He made reference to an alleged air strike on a school in Minab at the start of the war which Iran has blamed on Israel and the US.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey martyred our girls in Minab, 160 of them, and in this incident they are taking our girls hostage,\u201d Taj said \u201cThey did a terrible thing. Last night, some people came and lay down in front of the car they were driving to the airport,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Crowds had gathered outside the Gold Coast stadium for the game against Philippines banging drums and shouting \u201cregime change for Iran\u201d, an AFP reporter saw.<\/p>\n

Supporters surrounded the Iranian team bus, chanting \u201clet them go\u201d and \u201csave our girls\u201d.<\/p>\n

Taj said that at the airport the squad had trouble boarding their flight. <\/p>\n

\u201cThey completely blocked them at the gate and told everyone to become refugees.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The head of the Iranian Football Federation on Tuesday cast further doubt on his country\u2019s participation in this summer\u2019s World Cup, saying women playing in the Asian Cup in Australia had been coerced into defecting and made \u201chostages\u201d \u2014 a claim strongly rejected by the Australian Government. \u201cIf the World Cup is like this, who […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":232621,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6807],"tags":[2228,1800,18227,1641,83,1736,1808,2064,9030,26130,1567,4015,149,4311,70797,3429,49696,70801,2443,70800,67230,70795,70799,6800,1810,320,70802,11242,3138,1533,1809,1728,6068,1691,5542,5441,472,6058,2390,5561,9595,25048,49914,1792,70796,1847,29740,70798],"class_list":{"0":"post-232620","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-leagues-cups","8":"tag-agence-france-presse","9":"tag-america","10":"tag-anthony-stephen-tony-burke","11":"tag-asia","12":"tag-australia","13":"tag-australia-and-new-zealand","14":"tag-california","15":"tag-canada","16":"tag-central-america","17":"tag-donald-trump","18":"tag-eastern-asia","19":"tag-football-match","20":"tag-football-news","21":"tag-football-team","22":"tag-girls-hostage","23":"tag-gold-coast","24":"tag-group-games","25":"tag-hormozgan","26":"tag-iran","27":"tag-iranian-football","28":"tag-iranian-state-television","29":"tag-iranian-team-bus","30":"tag-iranian-women","31":"tag-israel","32":"tag-los-angeles","33":"tag-mexico","34":"tag-minab","35":"tag-national-anthem","36":"tag-national-team","37":"tag-north-america","38":"tag-northern-america","39":"tag-oceania","40":"tag-philippines","41":"tag-queensland","42":"tag-seattle","43":"tag-soccer-team","44":"tag-south-korea","45":"tag-south-eastern-asia","46":"tag-southern-asia","47":"tag-state-of-washington","48":"tag-team-hotel","49":"tag-team-members","50":"tag-team-pose","51":"tag-united-states-of-america","52":"tag-wartime-traitors","53":"tag-western-asia","54":"tag-women-players","55":"tag-zahra-ghanbari"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232620","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=232620"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232620\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/232621"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=232620"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=232620"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=232620"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}