It’s sickening that the good and great of football, who couldn’t take the knee quickly enough, haven’t said a word (even Ian Wright is quiet!) over the plight of the Iranian women’s football team, who face a perilous future for simply failing to sing their national anthem.
These brave souls will be dealt with by a leadership that thought nothing of killing 6,000 to 30,000 young people back in January. One of the innocent victims who took to the streets was a member of the women’s team. She was 27.
Although six players have now sought asylum in Australia, the rest of the squad, under pressure from their military guards, have been forced to fly home, fearing their families will suffer if they don’t.
They have already been described as ‘’wartime traitors’’ and what remains of the leadership – they are the ones with heads still connected to their torsos- have been urged to treat the women ‘’severely’’.
But where are the Lionesses in all this? Not a peep. Or the gobshites on MoTD? Not a peep. Or the Sky people? Not a peep. Gary Nevillle? Never short of a view? Not a peep.
Even the FA has said FA. I presume they all fear their work will dry in the Middle East if they don’t keep schtum. But Iran does not represent the whole Middle East. A sports editor friend of mine went to the last World Cup in Qatar, and he said it was the best ever. Never felt threatened, either by other fans or the local police.
Everybody knew that if you stuck to the rules, everything would be fine. The trouble with the West is that everybody thinks that with a good lawyer, you can make sure the rules don’t apply to you.
The pundits who couldn’t take the knee quick enough have all suddenly lost their voice – Kelvin Mackenzie
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Let’s be honest, the Islamists running Iran are ogres. Last year, one of the women players was suspended because, while playing, her hijab became loose, exposing her hair. She was banned until she apologised. How awful is that?
It’s that kind of medieval bullying which needs football administrators, owners and players to come out against. But there’s silence. And it’s deafening.
Ponder for a second on what kind of future these courageous ladies will face back home, all because they felt, in the light of the death of Khameini and the Israel-American attacks, they could, at last, see freedom beckoning.
Not unreasonably, on Monday felt they could show their defiance by not singing their national anthem ahead of their game against South Korea in the Asian Cup, which was being held at the Gold Coast stadium in Queensland.
I can’t imagine the bravery that was needed to take on the regime with their silence. That courage would make a great Netflix documentary.
So I urge all football fans to show up the pundits and this Saturday start chanting at their grounds on behalf of the Iranian ladies who will be enormously frightened at what might happen to them.
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