After all the threats and objections by Iranian clubs to withdraw from AFC Champions League as the result of AFC decision to move the venues of the 4 Iranian clubs to neutral grounds, Esteghlal Tehran just announced that it has agreed on the venue change from Tehran to Dubai.

According to ISNA, Esteghlal has announced in an official press release that they are going to Dubai to play Al-Kuwait in the AFC Champions League Groups play-offs and have accepted the terms of AFC. Earlier, Iranian representatives had stated that they would not accept the decision of the AFC to ban Iranian teams from hosting matches and would withdraw from the AFC Champions League if the AFC did not respect their rights.

This decision is yet another indication of the weakness and ineffectiveness of Iranian football management and lack of harmony with the federation.  It is not clear whether the other three clubs have accepted the AFC decision like Esteghlal.