Iran’s authorities have reportedly detained members of the family of Zahra Ghanbari, the captain of Iran’s women’s national football team, after she sought asylum in Australia. At the same time, pressure on the family of another player, Mohadeseh Zolfi, is said to have forced her to withdraw her asylum request and rejoin the Iranian women’s national team, which is currently in Kuala Lumpur.

Of the seven players who initially applied for asylum, only Atefeh Ramazanzadeh and Fatemeh Pasandideh have remained in Australia. The club Brisbane Roar FC Women announced their arrival by sharing photos of the two Iranian players and wrote:

“Today, Brisbane Roar officially welcomed both Fatemeh Pasandideh and Atefeh Ramezanisadeh to the club’s training facilities to take part in training with our A-League Women squad and remain committed to providing a supportive environment for them whilst they navigate the next stages.”

Meanwhile, the Persian-language media outlet Iran International reported, citing its own sources, that the asylum request submitted by Zahra Soltan Moshkekar, who was part of the team’s coaching staff and reportedly used the alias “Flor,” was allegedly made at the request of Mohammad Rahman Salari, the team’s Herasat officer. According to the report, the move was intended to maintain contact channels to facilitate the return of the footballers.

In Iran’s sports structure, the Harasat operates as a branch of the intelligence apparatus within national teams and sports federations, overseeing political and security control over Iranian sports. Some observers believe that “Flor” herself may have been a Harasat operative who accompanied the Iranian women’s national football team to Australia under the guise of a member of the coaching staff.

Iran’s football network is widely considered to be closely tied to the country’s security apparatus. The Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran operates under the influence of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, one of the most powerful institutions in the Islamic Republic.

The federation’s current president, Mehdi Taj, is also associated with the IRGC. Taj has previously been linked to security operations in western Iran during confrontations with Iranian Kurdish groups, during which he reportedly sustained a leg injury.

Against this backdrop, observers say the players who sought asylum could face serious consequences should they return to Iran. The close relationship between sports institutions and state security bodies has long raised concerns among athletes and activists about political oversight in Iranian sport.

The situation also unfolds amid a highly volatile political climate inside Iran. Public anger intensified after a violent crackdown by security forces in January, when the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps carried out a large-scale suppression of anti-government protests across the country. Various reports and estimates suggest that tens of thous ands of people may have been killed during the crackdown, although the exact death toll remains disputed due to restrictions on information and a nationwide communications blackout

Within this environment, some analysts argue that the scale of the violence has reshaped public attitudes in Iran. According to these observers, many citizens increasingly believe that external support may be necessary to bring about meaningful political change in the country.