A crowd of supporters of the Iranian women’s football team crowded around their bus, shouting at police to “save our girls” as it left the grounds on Sunday night after their defeat at the AFC Women’s asian Cup.
As the bus carrying Iran’s women’s football team was leaving the stadium, the situation suddenly took a dramatic turn when from inside the bus the players began signaling “Help” in sign language.
— Throwback Iran (@Tarikh_Eran) March 8, 2026
This all started when they refused to sign the national anthem in their first game… pic.twitter.com/k2pVVPBiNb
There has been an increasing concern over the safety of the team after they refused to sing the Iranian national anthem at the opening match of the AFC Women's Asian Cup.
About 13 Australian community and civil society organisations have now petitioned in a joint letter to Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke, urging the Australian government to let the team stay in the country amid the war in Iran.
The letter, which was also signed by the Australian United Solidarity for IRAN (AUSIRAN), the Iranian Women’s Association and Amnesty National Iran Network, asked the government to ensure the team is not forced to depart Australia, expressing “grave concern” for their safety.
It was also reported that it has been difficult to contact any of the players due to the security presence around them. Some reports said the personnel accompanying them, were regime-connected and that the players were restricted from moving freely and communicating.
In the opening match, the team had remained silent and stoic as the Iranian national anthem played. The Iranian state media had publicly condemned the act as ‘wartime treason’ and said that the players must be dealt with severely.
Following this, the players then changed their stance and sang and saluted the anthem for their next two matches which led critics to believe that they were forced to do so by the IRGC personnel accompanying them.
On Sunday, Iran’s campaign ended after they lost 2-0 to the Philippines team which went on to secure their fourth place in group A.
Demonstrators surrounded the athletes bus on Sunday night, chanting “save our girls” and "lion and sun girls we support you". The symbols were used before the Islamic Revolutions in 1979.
Some banged on the bus asking them to “let them go”. The situation lasted about 15 minutes.
Hadi Karimi, a Brisbane-based human rights activist who was part of the demonstrations, said, "We surrounded the bus, we asked police to save their lives; their lives are in danger," to ABC News.
Masoud Zoohori runs a Persian-language broadcasting service called Radio Neshat out of Melbourn told ABC news that he had contact with the athletes until Saturday and said that the girls were “very worried” and “stressed”.
"They told me, 'It's like we're in prison … we're constantly under control. We don't have any word from family back home. They won't let us leave the hotel alone. We're under a lot of pressure," he said.
Exiled Iranian prince Reza Pahlavi also came out to rally support for the women. In a post on X, he said that the team members are under "significant pressure and ongoing threat from the Islamic Republic".
The members of the Iranian Women’s National Football Team are under significant pressure and ongoing threat from the Islamic Republic. As a result of their brave act of civil disobedience in refusing to sing the current regime’s national anthem, they face dire consequences should…
— Reza Pahlavi (@PahlaviReza) March 8, 2026
"As a result of their brave act of civil disobedience in refusing to sing the current regime’s national anthem, they face dire consequences should they return to Iran. I call on the Australian government to ensure their safety and give them any and all needed support," he said.
Iran's coach Marziyeh Jafari, however, has been cautious with her comments. After the game, she told reporters, "We want to come back to Iran as soon as we can, and I want to be with my country and with all Iranians inside Iran. We are eager to come back as soon as we can," she said, speaking through an interpreter.
It is unclear if the player would want to seek asylum in Australia, as their supporters demand. It is also unclear what the repercussions would be if they did.
Australia’s foreign minister Penny Wong said the country “stands in solidarity” with the people of Iran. However, she did not comment on the players and the current situation.
Meanwhile, Craig Foster, the former Australian men's national soccer team captain, has urged the global football authorities to take action to protect the athletes.
