The Iranian women’s national football team crossed the Turkish border into Iran yesterday, among them several players who withdrew an asylum bid in Australia.
Seven members of the delegation had sought sanctuary in Australia last week after being branded “traitors” in Iran for refusing to sing the national anthem before their opening game at the Women’s Asian Cup.
But five later changed their minds, including captain Zahra Ghanbari.
The team arrived in Istanbul on Tuesday evening from Oman, then flew to the eastern city of Igdir before traveling home overland.
Wearing Iranian national team tracksuits, the women could be seen leaving the airport for the Gurbulak-Bazargan crossing about 100 kilometers to the southeast.
The players arrived in Turkey via Oman and Kuala Lumpur, having left Australia after being eliminated from the Asian Cup.
In a post on X, Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said the players and their support team were “children of the homeland, and the people of Iran embrace them.”
In the end, only two of the players remained in Australia.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
