Sosha Makani wearing the yellow trousers that the Iran football federation’s morality committee deemed inappropriate. “Sosha suspended for six months because of yellow trousers,” read the headline of Varzesh3, an Iranian sports news agency. “SpongeBob [trousers] cause six-month suspension for Sosha,” said the online news agency Asriran. The linking of Makani’s appearance with the American cartoon character SpongeBob SquarePants appears to stem from the fact that he was wearing lurid yellow trousers. A professional footballer who has represented Iran’s national team has been suspended for six months from domestic competition after a picture surfaced online showing him wearing what has been described as a pair of SpongeBob SquarePants trousers.

Source: The Guardian June 08, 2016 14:16 UTC