Five of the Iranian female soccer players who defected to Australia from Iran meets with the Australia for Home Affairs with Minister Tony Burke (center) the location where this photo was taken is undisclosed to protect the women’s whereabouts on Tue Mar 10, 2026 (AP News photo)

The Iranian women’s national soccer team was granted asylum in Australia

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi Gonzalez

Five Iranian women members of the national soccer team were labeled “wartime traitors” by Iranian state media after they refused to sing the Islamic Republic’s national anthem during the 2026 AFC Women’s Asian Cup in Australia. Here in the United States, some athletes in the past have become “heroes” for similar reasons.

In 2016, then-San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick knelt on one knee during the US national anthem to protest racial injustice, which at the end cost him his career as a professional football player. The United States of America and Iran are diametrically opposed political systems.

The U.S. is considered the oldest functioning, continuous constitutional democracy in the world, while Iran is a theocratic state characterized by authoritarian rule, with governance based on Shia Islam and the supreme authority held by an unelected Supreme Leader, with a history of brutal repression against its own people, particularly in response to protests, and as a major state sponsor of terrorism.

A few years ago, a woman was executed because she refused to wear the Islamic headgear called a Hijab. A United Nations diplomat from Israel recently said, “Women in Iran are treated like dogs”. Australia’s home affairs minister, Tony Burke, said that five of the 26-member squad had told the Australian authorities they wanted to remain in Australia and that the same offer had been extended to the rest of the team.

Iran might not be in the World Cup. The Iranian men’s national team’s participation in the 2026 World Cup in the U.S. is officially scheduled but in severe doubt due to rising geopolitical tensions and military conflict. While Iran is qualified and slated to play group matches in Los Angeles and Seattle, potential boycotts or travel restrictions are being considered.

Even if they come, they are not scheduled to play any matches in the Bay Area. Condoleezza Rice, Stanford Professor of Political Science, when asked about Iran today, said, “To say Iran is not a threat is ‘ahistorical ” Did You Know? El Salvador and Honduras fought a 100-hour war, the “Football War” (or Soccer War) in 1969 over deep-seated issues, including land disputes. economic inequality and mass migration. The war lasted from July 14–18, 1969, following intense tension surrounding the 1970 World Cup qualifying matches.

Amaury Pi-Gonzalez – Cuban-born Pi-González is one of the pioneers of Spanish-language baseball play-by-play in America. Began as Oakland A’s Spanish-language voice in 1977 ending in 2024 (interrupted by stops with the Giants, Mariners and Angels). Voice of the Golden State Warriors from 1992 through 1998. 2010 inducted in the Bay Area Radio Hall of fame.

While in the Bay Area, great food and great prices. 998cuba.com