CNN News Agency: The Iranian government has threatened the families of Iran’s national team members.
CNN, quoting a knowledgeable source, has reported that the Iranian government has put pressure on the national team players by threatening their families to prevent them from showing any protest behavior.
CNN says the source of this report is involved in the security arrangements for the Qatar 2022 World Cup games.
This source has stated that after the players refused to sing the national anthem in the first match against England, they were summoned to a meeting with members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. In this meeting, the players were told that if they did not sing the national anthem or took any protest action against the government, their families would face imprisonment and torture.
CNN also reported, quoting this source, that Carlos Queiroz, Iran’s head coach, had a separate meeting with members of the Guard.
The players’ refusal to sing the national anthem in the first match against England received widespread coverage in global media, but in the second match against Wales, the players accompanied the national anthem.