Doha: Ahead of their opening World Cup match against England on Monday, Iran’s soccer players refused to sing their national anthem even as their anthem echoed in the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha.

The footballers of Iran’s national team took this stand in apparent support for anti-government protesters in their country. Prior to the start of the game, the team captain Alireza Jahanbaksh said the team would take a collective decision whether or not to refuse to sing the national anthem in solidarity for demonstrations against Iran's regime.

This is what courage looks like

The Iranian football team refuses to sing the national anthem on biggest stage in the world

Eleven men, standing shoulder to shoulder, sending out a message without uttering a word#WorldCup #WorldCup2022 #Qatar2022 #Iran pic.twitter.com/n8gtQed4Fl
— Stefan Simanowitz (@StefSimanowitz) November 21, 2022

The situation in Iran continues to simmer even two months after a young woman’s custodial death over the hijab issue. On September 16, a 22-year-old Mahsa Amini died in police custody three days after her arrest over an alleged breach of the Islamic Republic’s dress code for women which includes mandatory headscarf.

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