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The Iranian women’s national soccer team made quite the statement on Monday night during the opening match of the Women’s Asian Cup, as they refused to sing while their national anthem played over the speakers at Cbus Super Stadium on the Gold Coast.
The players were in their customary line before their match against South Korea, when the Iranian national anthem began to play. The women, looking straight ahead and barely moving, were stoic as it appeared there were jeers from the crowd. Later, applause erupted from those in attendance following the 3-0 South Korea victory.
Iran’s manager, Marziyeh Jafari, was also seen smiling as she looked upon her players’ silence from the sidelines.
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Team Iran listen national anthems before the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Australia 2026 football match between South Korea and Iran in Gold Coast on March 2, 2026. (Izhar Khan / AFP)
This silence is particularly deafening following the confirmed U.S.-Israeli strikes over the weekend that killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iran has since counterattacked by firing missiles and drones at Israel and regional countries that host U.S. allies or military bases, including Bahrain and Qatar.
During questioning by media on Sunday, Iran women’s national team captain Zahra Ghanbari, alongside Jafari, was asked about Khamenei’s death. The question was shot down quickly.
Jafari answered in Farsi, but an AFC media representative cut off her response without any translation, according to ESPN.
“OK, I think that’s all for your question. Thank you for asking. Let’s just focus on the game itself,” the media rep said before questioning continued.
While the content of Jafari’s response remains unknown, the team’s stoic nature during the national anthem, which is usually met by at least some players singing, says enough.
The U.S. and Israel’s massive joint military operation, known as “Operation Epic Fury,” left many of Iran’s major leaders dead, including Khamenei. President Donald Trump warned on Sunday against any Iranian retaliation, saying if Iran were to “hit very hard,” they would be met with “a force that has never been seen before.”
The attacks have impacted the sports world as well as the rest of the country; the football federation’s president shared a bleak outlook about playing in this year’s FIFA World Cup. Iran has already qualified for the tournament and is set to face New Zealand in Los Angeles in June to kick off its Group G schedule.
of Islamic Republic of Iran walks out for the start of the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Australia 2026 match between Korea Republic v Islamic Republic of Iran at Gold Coast Stadium on March 2, 2026 in Gold Coast, Australia. (Albert Perez/Getty Images)
“What is certain is that after this attack, we cannot be expected to look forward to the World Cup with hope,” football president Mehdi Taj told sports portal Varzesh3 on Sunday.
“The US regime has attacked our homeland, and this is an incident that will not go unanswered.”
FIFA also noted it will be monitoring the situation with Iran.
Iran’s national team will not be preparing for the World Cup at this time, as a 40-day mourning period following the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is in effect. However, the women’s national team was allowed to compete in the Asian Cup.
Elsewhere in the sports world, Digital learned that Israel’s national gymnastics team suspended all training and team activities amid the counterattack, with the Israel Gymnastics Federation (IGF) providing a statement announcing that the violence has caused “unavoidable disruptions.”
“The current security situation in our region has resulted in unavoidable disruptions to our regular training schedule and has created significant uncertainty regarding the national teams’ professional plans, particularly as we are at the outset of the international season,” the statement read.
Team Iran poses for a group photo before the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Australia 2026 match against South Korea in Gold Coast on March 2, 2026. (Izhar Khan / AFP)
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A source within the team also told Digital on Saturday that the gymnasts have been moving between bomb shelters since Iran’s counterstrikes began.
Iranian airstrikes killed at least eight Israelis on Sunday, when a missile barrage landed just miles from Jerusalem in Beit Shemesh.
‘ Jackson Thompson contributed to this report.
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