US News Metro Long Island Politics

Sports NFL MLB Olympics NBA NHL College Football College Basketball WNBA

Business Personal Finance

Entertainment TV Movies Music Celebrities Awards Theater

Lifestyle Weird But True Sex & Relationships Viral Trends Human Interest Parenting Fashion & Beauty Food & Drink Travel

Health Wellness Fitness Health Care Medicine Men’s Health Women’s Health Mental Health Nutrition

Science Space Environment Wildlife Archaeology

Today’s Paper Covers Columnists Horoscopes Crosswords & Games Sports Odds Podcasts Careers

Email Newsletters Official Store Home Delivery Tips

Switch between CA and NY editions here.

Why won’t US activists speak up for the tortured Iran women’s soccer team?

An athlete’s silent act of dissent can turn both her and her family into targets of intimidation under the rule of Iran’s radical Islamist regime.

After refusing to sing the Islamic Republic’s anthem before a match in Australia, seven members of Iran’s women’s national soccer team sought asylum there, making a desperate choice no athlete should ever face.

After the regime issued threats against the seven and jailed their families, five later withdrew their claims and left.

And yet from the global capital of women’s soccer, there has been no public solidarity.

American stars who never miss a chance to speak about women’s sports, equality and courage, like Megan Rapinoe, have had nothing to say as Iranian players risk exile, prison and retaliation for the smallest act of defiance.

The regime’s campaign of terror against dissidents does not spare the athletes it forces to compete under its flag, subjecting them to bans, interrogation, and detention if they display any measure of resistance.

Iranian women’s soccer team member flip-flops on asylum — reveals secret site where her teammates hid

Boxer Sadaf Khadem remained in France after an arrest warrant was issued in 2019 when she fought without gear the regime considered necessary under its Islamic dress code.

Footballer Shiva Amini was banned from Iran’s national team in 2017 after appearing abroad without wearing a hijab.

Olympic taekwondo medalist Kimia Alizadeh ultimately defected to Germany in 2020, saying Iranian athletes live under constant pressure and surveillance.

The 2022 “Woman, Life, Freedom” uprising that swept Iran accelerated this defiance.

Climber Elnaz Rekabi returned from Seoul that year after competing without a headscarf and was immediately forced into a state-managed apology spectacle and placed under house arrest.

Handball player Razieh Janbaz was barred from leaving the country after she backed the protest movement and posted unveiled photos.

After speed skater Niloufar Mardani competed in Istanbul without the mandatory hijab, Iranian authorities condemned her and removed her from the national team.

Taekwondo competitor and gymnastics coach Haniyeh Shariati Roudposhti was detained in Tehran in 2023 after appearing in public without compulsory hijab.

Borrowing a page from North Korea, Tehran preys on the families when it fails to silence the athlete.

Authorities detained Rekabi’s brother as pressure mounted for her to return home.

In the view of the Islamic Republic’s leaders, women athletes are not ambassadors; they are a problem to be contained.

Senior clerics have stated that allowing Iranian women to compete internationally is a “disgrace.”

Local religious representatives of the supreme leader have condemned women cheering at sporting events as “a manifestation of sin” and a form of “moral corruption.”

Few athletes in the world are more comfortable using their platform for social causes than America’s women’s soccer stars, which makes their silence here all the more jarring.

In America, women’s soccer players fight over real issues like pay, recognition and viewership — legitimate battles in their own right.

Rapinoe and teammates knelt during the national anthem in 2016 in solidarity with Colin Kaepernick, dominating headlines for days.

And when their activism moves into the courtroom, it is backed by the protections of a free society.

In 2019, members of the women’s national team sued the US Soccer Federation over equal pay, a case they ultimately won in 2022, using their World Cup victory celebrations to amplify the message across national television.

Iran’s female athletes have no courts to which they can turn to air their grievances.

Despite their achievements, they are subject to the same intrusive control of their lives as other Iranian women.

If women’s sports solidarity means anything, it has to include women who risk everything just to play, speak or stay silent.

Otherwise it is not solidarity. It is branding.

Janatan Sayeh is the Iran analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.

us women's national soccer team

Cindy Adams Rating 2026 Oscar looks -- From the good to whatever the hell Gwyneth Paltrow was thinking

Rating 2026 Oscar looks -- From the good to whatever the hell Gwyneth Paltrow was thinking

Daniel McCarthy Schumer's shutdown gambit gets riskier by the day

Schumer's shutdown gambit gets riskier by the day

Kirsten Fleming Face it, Hollywood — you're boring viewers with your self-righteous, out of touch, navel-gazing Oscars

Face it, Hollywood — you're boring viewers with your self-righteous, out of touch, navel-gazing Oscars

Front Cover Back Cover

Trending Now on NYPost.com

This story has been shared 71,005 times. 71,005 Trump briefed that Iran’s new supreme leader is probably gay — and president has priceless reaction

Trump briefed that Iran’s new supreme leader is probably gay — and president has priceless reaction

This story has been shared 68,082 times. 68,082 Former Syracuse QB dead at 28, less than a month after getting engaged

Former Syracuse QB dead at 28, less than a month after getting engaged

This story has been shared 56,417 times. 56,417 Mamdani’s city-run preschool expansion will leave parents with no other choice

Mamdani’s city-run preschool expansion will leave parents with no other choice

Watch 'Real Housewives' couple's arrest for allegedly stealing thousands in Publix groceries

Stream It Or Skip It: 'The Madison' On Paramount+, Where Michelle Pfeiffer Is A New York Woman Who Goes To Montana To Deal With Her Grief After A Tragedy

Trump briefed that Iran’s new supreme leader is probably gay — and president has priceless reaction

Sections & Features US News Metro World News Sports Sports Betting Business Opinion Entertainment Fashion & Beauty Shopping Lifestyle Real Estate Media Tech Science Health Travel Astrology Video Photos Alexa Covers Horoscopes Sports Odds Podcasts Crosswords & Games Columnists Classifieds

Post Sports+ Subscribe Articles Manage

Newsletters & Feeds Email Newsletters RSS Feeds NY Post Official Store Home Delivery Subscribe Manage Subscription Delivery Help

NY Post Official Store

Home Delivery Subscribe Manage Subscription

Help/Support About New York Post Editorial Standards New York Post Awards & Recognition Customer Service Apps Help Community Guidelines Contact Us Tips Newsroom Letters to the Editor Licensing & Reprints Careers Vulnerability Disclosure Program

New York Post Awards & Recognition

Contact Us Tips Newsroom Letters to the Editor Licensing & Reprints Careers Vulnerability Disclosure Program

Letters to the Editor

Vulnerability Disclosure Program

Apps iPhone App iPad App Android Phone Android Tablet

Advertise Media Kit Contact

© New York Post