It is very hard to believe it , but it is a reality.

For the first time in the illustrious history of Iranian football , the Iranian teams fans are outnumbered by the opposition team fans in the temple of Iranian football, the great Azadi stadium. The outnumbering is not few hundreds but at least by 15,000.

Afghanistan U23 will be playing Iran’s Omid team (u23) in the Qualifying rounds of the AFC U23 championship. Afghanistan  still stands a chance in the competition with 4 points against Iran’s 6. Over an estimated 15,000 Afghan fans living in Iran have flocked to Azadi to cheer their team. The Iranians fans have not exceeded 500 fans so far!!

It is no secret that the fans have not received this competition too well , despite the inclusion of the 2 young Team Melli players Azmoun and Jahanbakhsh. Nowrooz holidays is one reason for lack of attendance , but many fans have been despondent with the results of Iranian teams and their failures last year. Omid Team was the biggest loser when they failed to qualify from their 3 team group against Thailand and Kyrgyzstan in the 2014 Asian Games last year.  The lack of interest in attending the match is reflective of how the Iranian fans receive and treat failures and their lack of tolerance for teams that fail to deliver.

The expectation is for more Iranians to make their way to Azadi , but it is very unlikely to match the number of Afghans in the stadium. Afghanistan fans have added color to this dour round of matches with their excellent support and backing for their team.