On Sunday, after his Iran side defeated Uruguay 1-0 in a friendly, Sardar Azmoun took to Instagram and wrote: “Because of the restrictive laws placed on us in the national team I am not supposed to speak out… I know I risk being sent home, but I can’t take it anymore! You will never be able to erase this from your conscience. Shame on you! You kill easily. Long live Iranian women!”
The reference was clear. Azmoun, like many Iranians, was incensed by the police response to the protests that have rocked Iran — from the metropolis of Teheran to the smallest rural villages — following the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, who was held after being apprehended by the so-called “morality police.” She was 22. According to her brother, who was with her when she was arrested, she was told that she wasn’t wearing her hijab, or headscarf, in an appropriate manner.
Azmoun, who has more than 5 million followers, saw his post go viral almost immediately. In a country — and a national team — already on edge and playing in sheltered, almost surreal conditions, as my colleague Mark Ogden reported last week, it poured gasoline on the fire of those wanting change. On Monday night, when Iran played Senegal in another friendly, drawing 1-1, the Iranian players made a point of walking out in black jackets before kickoff, which many saw as a sign of protest.
The 27-year-old forward, who plays for Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga, was feted as a hero both back home and by the Iranian diaspora around the world. His post was later removed and then his account was deleted. The account resurfaced Wednesday, and this time Azmoun appeared to have done a 180-degree turn.
“I have to apologize to the players of the national team because I caused my dear friends to be annoyed some supporters even insulted the national team,” he wrote. “This was not fair in any way and it was my mistake. I blame myself and I am ashamed in front of all the members of the national team and the technical staff who caused the order and peace of the team to be disrupted.”
