Sardar Azmoun, one of Iran's top footballers, has been expelled from the national team after falling foul of a perceived act of disloyalty to the government. ‌They ⁠should be told that they are not worthy of wearing the national team jersey. National team players should be people who proudly belt out the national anthem and deserve to wear the Iran jersey.' Misaghi was speaking against the backdrop of pictures of a ceremony welcoming the Iranian women's national team back to Tehran on their return from Australia. Iran's men are scheduled to play friendly internationals in Antalya, Turkey against Nigeria on ​March 27 and Costa Rica four days later as part of their World Cup preparations.

Source: Daily Mail March 20, 2026 12:44 UTC