Iran says women’s soccer captain drops Australia asylum bid

Iranian media said on Sunday that the captain of the women’s soccer team had rescinded her asylum application in Australia and would return to her home country.

Zahra Ghanbari will head from Australia to Malaysia and from there fly back to Iran, Tehran’s official IRNA news agency said.

IRNA said Ghanbari, who is also Iran’s all-time top female goal scorer, would now return “to the warm embrace of the homeland.”

But activists in Australia have voiced concern that the women and their families could face political persecution back in Iran after a recent government crackdown and amid an ongoing war.

5 Iranian team members rescind decision

Seven members members of the women’s soccer delegation had initially claimed asylum after they were eliminated 2026 AFC Women’s Asian Cup hosted in Australia.

The players had been in the spotlight after declining to sing Iran’s national anthem at their first match — a move which led them to be branded as “wartime traitors” by some conservative commentators at home.

At their next two games, the team saluted during the national anthem, leading to speculation that they had been pressured into doing so.

Amid increasing public attention and media speculation about the women’s welfare under the watch of their minders, Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke personally granted humanitarian visas to six players and one members of the team’s staff.

Last week, one player announced she had changed her mind, followed by two other players and the technical staff member, who also left on Saturday.

Ghanbari is reportedly the fifth member of the group to change her mind, leaving just two who are set to remain in Australia.

It was not clear why each individual changed their mind.

The rest of the team is currently in a hotel in Malaysia awaiting their onward travel to Iran.

Australia did ‘everything we could’

Australia’s home affairs minister confirmed the initial news that some of the group had changed their minds and would return to Iran.

“The Australian government has done everything we could to make sure these women were provided with the chance for a safe future in Australia,” Burke said.

“Australians should be proud that it was in our country that these women experienced a nation presenting them with genuine choices and interacted with authorities seeking to help them.”

Meanwhile, Iran’s governing football body accused Australia of kidnapping the players and forcing them to defect from their home country. The Iranian Sports Ministry accused Australia of “playing in Trump’s field.”

Edited by: Alex Berry