Australia grants asylum visas to five Iranian women footballers

Australia has granted humanitarian visas to five Iranian women footballers who decided not to return home and instead sought asylum, amid fears they could face persecution after refusing to sing the national anthem before an Asian Cup match.

Australia approved the humanitarian visas for the five players on Tuesday (March 10), after they submitted asylum requests over concerns for their safety if they returned to Iran.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told a press conference in Canberra on Tuesday, one day after police rescued the women footballers from the custody of Iranian government officials, that Australians had been deeply moved by the fate of the five women.

“Australians have been deeply moved by the fate of these brave women,” he said. “They are safe here. They will feel at home here.”

US President Donald Trump also praised Albanese for allowing the players to stay, posting on social media that the United States was ready to take in the Iranian women athletes if Australia had declined to do so.

Australian officials said the five Iranian footballers are Fatemeh Pasandideh, Zahra Ghanbari, Zahra Sarbali, Atefeh Ramazanzadeh, and Mona Hamoudi. They are now staying at an undisclosed location under police protection.

Albanese said Australia was also prepared to help other Iranian national team athletes currently in the country, although it would depend on whether they chose to accept the offer.

Television footage showed several other Iranian athletes leaving a hotel on the Gold Coast in north-eastern Australia and boarding a bus on Tuesday afternoon, although it was not clear which athletes were on board or where they were headed.

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke posted a picture with the five Iranian women footballers on X after their visas were approved, saying the government had been holding private talks with the athletes for several days. He acknowledged that seeking asylum had been a difficult decision for them.

“While the offer of assistance remains open to other members of the team, it is possible, and indeed highly likely, that not every woman in the squad will choose to accept the opportunity Australia has offered,” Burke said.

Iran’s Asian Cup campaign in Australia began at the same time as the United States and Israel launched air strikes on Iran, an escalation that resulted in the death of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Iran was eliminated from the tournament on Sunday (March 8) after a 2-0 defeat to the Philippines.

Branded traitors in wartime?

Before the visas for the five women players were approved, football fans and sports authorities had expressed concern for the team’s welfare after Iranian state television branded them “traitors in wartime” for refusing to sing the national anthem before their opening match against South Korea.

A commentator on the Islamic Republic of Iran’s state broadcaster described the players’ silent stance as “the ultimate disgrace”.

The Iranian women’s team later sang the national anthem and saluted before their second match against Australia, raising concerns among human rights campaigners that the players may have been pressured by Iranian officials.

Global players’ union FIFPRO also expressed concern over the safety and welfare of the remaining players and their families in Iran.

Iranian media reported that the other team members remained in Australia, citing Farideh Shojaei, vice-president for women’s affairs at the Iranian Football Federation, as saying that the team had planned to return to Iran via Dubai. However, as the United Arab Emirates did not allow transit, they were expected instead to travel home via Malaysia and Turkey.

Australia previously granted emergency humanitarian visas to more than 20 members of Afghanistan’s women’s cricket team after the Taliban returned to power in 2021 and banned women’s sport.