Tag: FFIRI

The Soccer Politics.

Why are we not surprised by the news that Canada has canceled the friendly match against Iran in Vancouver?

Competition-wise, it was an excellent test for Team Melli against a strong Canada team with similarities in style and physique to the Americans whom Iran would meet in Doha in the World Cup. In fact, despite the constant criticism that we have against the administration of the FFIRI, which remains quite poor regardless, pulling off such a friendly game was indeed a coup!

It was a long shot but somehow it was arranged to the credit of the FFIRI.

BUT…on the political side, it was a time bomb. Ultimately, politics won as it always does. Not very dissimilar to what we are experiencing against Russian football and athletes, except Russia claimed to be an aggressor in a war, while Iran has no such claims against it and has always been a target and a victim. Never mind the rhetoric of the self-proclaimed bearers of Human Rights, regimes like Canada cannot survive being independent of the American policies and Zionist influence hence Canada vs. Iran was always under threat. Iran playing right next door to the Americans would be a victory for the enemy and the Americans won’t like it. The US government would not allow that satisfaction for the Iranians.  Why would the Prime Minister of Canada intervene in a football match, doesn’t the man have more important things to do like running a country?

Trudeau simply did not want to upset his masters in Washington, the game was not going to happen, period. No doubt, Soccer Canada will come up with a bunch of excuses for canceling the game, but in reality, it is nothing but succumbing to political pressure no more no less.

In any case, this one-sided cancelation once again highlights the plight of Iran’s football lack of skilled and professional management. The FFIRI is in serious need of a competent cadre of highly experienced management personnel who have the skills, aptitude, and intelligence to run such an important organization in the country. Of course, we do realize that the government will never cease to interfere by pushing its own agents into the administration with all kinds of tricks, but there is still a great need to find a solution for this dilemma cum incompetency that is hindering the natural development of football in Iran.

Now that the Canada match is off, and that never officially confirmed match against Ecuador was also off, Iran has to scramble in the dustbin to find an opponent for the upcoming FIFA Day. It might even have to pay those pathetic Albanians after all to save Iran’s blushes and arrange a friendly game somewhere, possibly Doha.

In the end, it is no one except the FFIRI’s fault, no matter how many excuses they would come up with for Team Melli to be deprived of a strong opponent with only a few months left to the World Cup.

Former FFIRI President Azizi Khadem banned for two years.

The ethics committee announced its verdict in the case of the ousted president and some officials of the then Football Federation.

According to ISNA and quoting the Football Federation, the final verdict was made after careful deliberations on the Executive Committee of the FFIRI and based on the finding of the Investigation Team and the report by the special audit committee.  The Executive Committee has declared that several members of the Football Administration, headed by the President Azizi Khadem have committed violations of the rules, amounting to illegal transfer of money, payment for services not rendered, authorizing payment for Persepolis Club without the knowledge and approval of the Executive Committee of the federation as required by the bylaws plus several other misdemeanors committed during the short tenure of Azizi Khadem in the FFIRI

The Committee, also referring to the Code of Ethics of the FIFA announced that Ali Soleimani Sarmi  (treasurer), Hassan Kamranifar (secretary-general), Vahid Fadaei (head of  finance), and Mohammad Babazadeh Darvish (former head of the legal affairs) have been found guilty of violating the ethical rules of football and according to the lawsuit dated May 15,

Shahabuddin Azizi Khadem has been sentenced to a total ban from all football and futsal activities for a period of 2 years and also to pay a fine of one hundred Million Toman

It also found  Ali Soleimani Sarmi to be guilty as charged and banned from all football and futsal activities for a period of 1 year and fined  30 million Toman

Hassan Kamranifar to pay a 40 million Toman fine while Vahid Fadai to pay 30 million Tomsn and  Mohammad Babazadeh to pay a fine of 30 million Toman.

Although the accusations against Azizi Khadem amounted to criminal negligence and misappropriation of funds which is punishable by Iranian laws, the FFIRI did not indicate if the case will be referred to the courts of law in Iran. The government, however, has the full right to investigate the case and has a track record in prosecuting corruption and funds misappropriation cases with severity in a country that is infested with financial corruption all across.

Dragan Skocic undergoes successful operation

Team Melli head Coach has undergone a successful operation after suffering from a gastrointestinal complication. Dragan Skocic was already under treatment for his ailment before the surgery was mandated.

Skocic , was in his home country Croatia for a vacation, when he underwent the operation. He returned to Croatia after the draw of the national team matches in the World Cup.

Skocic’s recuperation period is only a few days and the head coach will have no problem returning back to his duty. At the moment, there is no indication at all if the FFIRI has managed to engage any team for the friendly matches.

FFIRI negotiates friendlies with Argentina or Brazil.

The Iranian football federation FFIRI Secretary-General Hassan Kamranifar has declared that his federation is actively planning friendly preparatory games for Team Melli ahead of its participation in the FIFA World Cup Qatar, 2022.

Kamranifar said: “As you know, Brazil and Argentina have a postponed match in the World Cup qualifiers which is scheduled to be held in Qatar. We are negotiating with one of these two teams to agree to play an international friendly against them.

The Secretary-General of the Football Federation added: “4 teams out of 6 possible opponents of Team Melli are among the best and are in the top ranks of the FIFA rankings. Both teams are in the middle ranks, we are going to choose teams whose games are close to our opponents. Therefore, we have negotiated with Peru, New Zealand, and several other countries, which we will announce immediately after it is finalized.”

He continued: “Holding friendly games is difficult due to financial issues. One or two teams have requested to play behind closed doors and without television broadcasting, which is still good ”
in discussing the readiness of  Team Melli,  Kamranifar emphasized: “Skocic is also trying on his side to use his contacts to arrange friendly games and we hope this will happen soon so that we can play a friendly match in the first FIFA Day,”

UPCOMING FIFA DAYS 2022

Dates Matches
30 May – 14 June 2022 4
19–27 September 2022 2

Payment fo the local coaches of Team Melli are still on hold!

Dragan Skočić has arranged the Training camp program in preparation for Team Melli games, but the task of his Iranian assistants and their involvement in the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 is still unclear. Karim Bagheri and Vahid Hashemian were the assistant coaches of Iran on the way to the World Cup, along with Mehrdad Khanban who is the team analyst. Apparently, the Football Federation has not yet been able to pay the full salaries of the national team’s local coaches, which resulted in a protest by Bagheri and Hashemian.

After the draw for the World Cup in Qatar, Skocic’s Iranian assistants asked for their bonuses and payment as per the contract, but the Football Federation’s response to this legitimate request was even stranger than before. The FFIRI declared lack of money as the main reason for the non-payment of its obligation to the local technical staff of Team Melli and stated that it will not be able to pay these amounts until the funds awed to Iran are credited to the federation by FIFA .

The financial resources of FFIRI are limited and the bank account is just about empty as FIFA is still withholding Iran’s dues from the qualification matches, despite the fact that the team reached the Qatar World Cup early. The most concerning issue is also the failure of FFIRI has still failed to sign contracts for friendly games with the world’s most prestigious football teams. It seems that the priority for Mirshad Majedi, the acting head of FFIRI and members of the board of directors, is still to hold a general assembly of the federation to determine the fate of Shahabuddin Azizi Khadem, the deposed head while Team Melli is still not a top priority despite the promises.

The saga of Azizi Khadem!

The events leading to and following the temporary removal of Azizi Khadem are indeed mind-boggling affair and is indicative of how crooked and dodgy football is in Iran.

Hardly a household name or a person with an illustrious football career,  Azizi Khadem, found himself occupying the most important post in Iran’s football. In a dodgy election, he managed to beat a much tried and tested Kiomars Hashmi, Mostafa Ajrlou, and Iran’s football legend Ali Karimi to win the presidency of FFIRI.

Azizi Khadem was in fact was a member of FFIRI working behind the scenes but he was hardly a newsworthy item and rarely quoted in public. He tried his luck for the post of presidency twice and failed, it was his third time lucky for the former executive of several government-owned industries.

Government-owned is indeed the magical word, as through such connections that even dubious people can go a long way climbing the ladder.

Azizi Khadem’s win, which was a surprise for many critics, did not start on a positive note. He was media-shy and prepared to work quietly. His modus operandi was to keep below the radar, follow his agenda, and hope he was not noticed frequently. In such a post, it was difficult to achieve tor that. But, he managed to ruffle some feathers, and the opposition to his management style and threat to his post started brewing within the corridors of tFFIRI growing bigger and bigger by the weeks.

Career and Biography

Shahabuddin Azizi Khadem was born on February 22, 1977, in Lorestan. He was a Bachelor of Political Science graduate from the University of Tehran, holds a Master’s degree in Regional Studies and International Relations from Allameh Tabatabai University, and a Ph.D. in International Relations from the University of Tehran.

A man with two birth certificates

Shahabuddin Aziz Khatam used a birth certificate number 755 and date of birth 11973 in Pol Tang, which belonged to his deceased brother

On August 10, 1997, he was able to get his new identity card with the date of his birth of January 21, 1976, which conflicts with many of his records and does not match his real age!

a 10 years old soldier!

In his own words, Azizi Khadem said that in 1987, according to his old identity card, he was drafted and sent to the war front as a 15-year-old boy, although according to his new identity card, he would have been a 10-year-old child!!

football background.

After the war, while studying in 1997, he played as a right-back for the Rah Ahan team and was a member of Iran’s students’ national team. During the reign of Ahmadinejad’s government, and due to his close connection with Parviz Kazemi, the then Minister of Welfare, Azizi Khadem was appointed to the board of directors of several government-owned companies operating under the authority of the Ministry of Welfare.

He was a board member of Amirkabir Petrochemical and Shazand Petrochemical government-owned companies and was also the Parliamentary and Legal advisor to his mentor the Minister of Welfare and Social Security.

Azizi Khadem somehow entered football administration by recommendation and influences through an appointment in the board of directors of the Football Federation  FFIRI. in 2012 at the age of 33, and a year later he became a member of the Executive board of directors of the government-owned club “Peykan”.

He somehow was appointed as a Board Member of FFIRI at the age of 33 when the bylaws of FFIRI stipulate that the minimum age for such appointment was 35 years!

Running for Presidency

In 2017, he tried to register his candidacy for the Presidency of the Football Federation, but his application was rejected due to his lack of 10 years of managerial experience required to be eligible. He was disqualified.

Azizi Khadem tried her luck again a year later in 2018, but the assembly voted for “Mahmoud Islamian“. in 2020, he was able to enter Saipa Club as a Board Member of the government-owned club

In 2021, Azizi Khadem along with Ali Karimi, Mostafa Ajrlou, and Kiomars Hashemi were approved as candidates for the post of President of the Football Federation. Finally, he was able to win 48 votes of members of the Assembly against 38 votes of Kiomars Hashemi. After winning the election on his third attempt, he was appointed as the President of FFIRI.

Most of his career progression was through appointments. A career that started by faking his National Card “Shinasnameh” and dubious claim he was on the war front at the age of 10. The common factor in all his career was a government-own entity and a close connection to a Minster or person in a powerful position.

Interaction with sorcerers!

From the very first days of his tenure as president of the federation, there were rumors about how he interacted with some people active in the field of foreign sciences. A reference to witchcraft !. In August 2021 after Team Melli defeated Syria 1-0 to put its feet firmly for the qualification to the World Cup 2022, Azizi Khadem attributed the victory to God and the prayer of “Khooban Alam” rather than the players, coaches, or the whole squad. ‘Khooban Alam’ was a reference to those mystery forces which his critics believe to be similar to mysterious voodooism.

VAR controversy from Israel

After “Khooban Alam”, he produced another blooper which led to controversy. Iran was about to acquire the VAR system. FFIRI contracted a company based in Hong Kong, to supply the system.  The contract was suspended with that company after the revelation that it was indeed an Israeli shareholders company. This refereeing assistance system was supposed to reach Iran, but it was stopped. Seems that Azizi Khadenm and his staff failed to carry out the proper due diligence.

It was all downhill from then on as a series of shortfalls, gaps, maladministration, and bad decision making put Azizi Khadem in loggerhead with the rest of the executive members. It is safe to say that he was exposed for what he was.

And then came his suspension in February 2022. That is 353 days after his appointment.

He was blamed for and subsequently held accountable for sub-standard training facilities for the national teams, supply of poor quality jerseys, the expulsion of Esteghlal and Persepolis from AFC Champions League, negligence in finalizing the coaching staff contracts,  delayed or non-payment of staff and coaching wages, the pseudo-VAR contract, and rumors of links to some witches and sorcerers, failure of timely response to AFC/FIFA correspondences while providing inaccurate or false information with FIFA, lack of transparency, nepotism, inflating FIFA with extra staff, the appointment of unqualified administrators in FFIRI ..etc which was said to be 43 violations.

Azizi Khadem is a classic example of how dark forces operate in Iran. Corruption is deep-rooted. While their pawn in FFIRI has left after being exposed for what he is, an incompetent and unfit person to lead Iran’s football to its glory days, the big players who put him there in the first place are still there, untouched and waiting. No doubt that at the next opportunity, they will pounce to produce another man to protect their interests. Nowadays, football is a lucrative business more than being a sport. It is being used by all sorts of nefarious characters since it can generate huge amounts of money.

It is how badly football is managed that has been the Achilles’ heel of Iran’s football for decades.

Azizi Khadem removed from his Presidency of FFIRI

Azizi-Khadim removed from his post

The executive board of directors of Iran’s Football Federation FFIRI has temporarily suspended the President of the federation FFIRI until further notice on Thursday. This suspension is the initial motion to remove Aziz Khadem from his post permanently.

At the request of five executive members, an extraordinary meeting was held on the morning of February 17th with the main item of the agenda being the suitability of the current president Shababudin Azizi Khadem in running the federation and addressing several shortfalls attributed to him.

The meeting reviewed the conditions upon which the president may continue in his post and conduct the duties of the top executive of the federation or the temporary suspension allowing another candidate to fill the role until the general assembly meeting that decides on the president. The executive board decided to suspend Azizi Khadem in the extraordinary meeting whose term of office did not last more than 354 days.

The most important managerial post in Iranian football lasted less than a year for the unpopular Aziz Khadem. Interestingly enough, under the so-called incompetent president, Iran recorded a historical third consecutive qualification to the World Cup with three matches yet to be played. ONly Brazil managed one better than Team Melli.

The Secretary-General becomes the De Facto President

The meeting was formalized at 9:30 am today, when Hassan Kamranifar, the Secretary-General of the Football Federation, made a great effort to implement the articles of association of the federation. He also asked the support of the Ministry of Sports to seriously prevent the entry of various people into the meeting.

The Arrival of Azizi Khadem

The president arrived at the National Football Center at 9:00 AM a good half an hour early to attend the decisive meeting.  Shahabuddin Azizi Khadem rushed through the gate of the National Football Center with his driver right in front of the reporters and press photographers. He refused to comment and had to be seen or photographed.

On the other hand, Shohreh Mousavi, Vice President of the Football Federation, and head of Women Football Affairs entered the National Football Center with a contrasting way, She and a number of the board were smiling for the media. Mousavi is credited for leading that gang of five, as referred to by some media outlets, for the move to outset Aziz Khadem. She along with Hasan Osouli, Mirshad Majedi, Ahmad Reza Barati, and Bahram Rezaian arrived full of confidence in achieving their goal..

The Strict security.

Security personnel of the Ministry of Sports and the Football Federation strictly prevented various people from entering the National Football Center. They even asked Bonyadi-Far who had a scheduled task at the center, to return back another day.

Journalists and other media personnel were present in front of the main door of the National Football Center from 8 o’clock, but they were not allowed to enter.

Filming for the day lest

The Public Relations of the Football Federation have fully filmed today’s meeting of the Executive Board of Directors in order to provide it to the competent authorities and the Asian Football Confederation if necessary.

Two management members were Barred from the meeting

According to the official announcement of the AFC, two of Aziz Khadem’s allies were prevented from attending the meeting. Haidar Baharvand and Hamid Reza MehrAli, the first and second vice-presidents of Khadem were excluded. The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has stated that the two men are not legally allowed to attend the board meeting deciding the fate of their boss, so both the deputies had to leave before the meeting deliberations started.

Obstruction to the entry of Khadem’s closest friend.

Mojtaba Khorshidi, the Manager of Team Melli was on his way to attend some business at the National Football Center, but the security of Azadi Stadium stopped him from entering. Khorshidi claimed that he intended to attend his office and not the meeting but the security informed him that the area is restricted even for the employees!. According to some witnesses, Khorshidi who is a personal friend of Azizi Khadem and his ally intended to have a short and urgent conversation with Azizi Khadem, but as he was not o enter under any circumstances, he slipped a note to his boss on a small piece of paper.

Police protection.

The arrival of the police security force which has deployed its patrol units around the National Football Center to ensure there will be no interruption or disturbances of the board meeting by the proponents of the incumbent president.

Breach of Security

The mysterious entry of a former head of the Futsal Committee, Davood Parhizkar, became a hot topic. Parhizkar is not an active member of the FFIRI and holds no official post, yet he was allowed to enter the National Football Center, but it is not clear whether he was able to attend the board meeting or is there only for personal matters.

The chairman responded and left.

A voting session was held on the dismissal or continuation of Azizi Khadem without his physical presence. At this meeting, he first defended himself against accusations and charges of shortfalls in his duty.  At the end of the interrogation, the majority of the board members voted to temporarily suspend Shahabuddin Azizi Khadem from the post of President of the Football Federation. This is unprecedented in Iran’s football history.

A majority consensus to expel the President.

Hassan Kamranifar, secretary-general of the Football Federation, called on the members present at the meeting to keep their votes secret. However, there has been a lot of talk about an alliance of eight members who could decide whether Shahab Azizi Khadem should stay or leave.

Ahmad Reza Barati, Shohreh Mousavi, Tahmours Heidari, Khodadad Afsharian, Mirshad Majedi, Ehsan Osouli, and Bahram Rezaian were present at the meeting.

Azizi Khadem’s entourage started packing.

The President of FFIRI under immense pressure had a few backers in the federation offices and corridors, however, those in his favor soon started packing their belongings in anticipation of worse things to come. That did not escape the hawkeyes of some reporters as they reported that a number of Azizi Khadem’s regular associates gathered their belongings after his temporary dismissal to say an early farewell. Azizi Khadem also bid farewell to all the staff at the national teams’ camp when he left the National Football Center, but refused to talk to reporters.

A serious challenge for FFIRI lies ahead.

The board of directors of the Football Federation, now headed by Mehrdad Seraji, not only has to make transparency its top priority but also has to resume the process of approving the bye-laws, which was previously approved by FIFA, in order to draw the approval of the Islamic Consultative Assembly. They should also try to hold a meeting of the General Assembly of the Federation as soon as possible to permanently remove Azizi Khadem.

Move to dismiss FFIRI president Azizi-Khadem

While the joy and celebration of Team Melli have not dried yet, the sweetness is becoming quite bitter for the FFIRI President Shahbubdin Aziz-Khadem.

In a somewhat unexpected move, the Executive Board of the Football Federation is finding it necessary to prepare the ground for the dismissal of Shahabuddin Azizi Khadem. Some members of the board of directors have decided to dismiss Azizi Khadem for weak performance and unsuitability to occupy the post of the head of the federation. Ceratin members have colluded and demanded that the incumbent President be subjected to a vote of confidence on the grounds of suitability and competency. those opposing Azizi Khadem also questioned his football chronology and management in this field, which falls far short of the required for such a sensitive and important post.

Observers however doubt that critique to be the true reason for the drive to oust him. Although many agree on the shortfall of Aziz Khadem and his lack of football pedigree and management skills, these facts were known from the day he registered his candidacy for the post of President of FFIRI. This political move is seen as the result of some pressure from above and the intervention of people who seek their own interests and/or settle personal accounts. The opposition group has lobbied hard to align the rest of the Executive Board Members with themselves in order to achieve their goals.

Certainly, Azizi Khadem’s performance in the Football Federation has its weaknesses and has many critics, however, it is not a one-man show and many on that board are accountable for the failure of the FFIRI to function efficiently. It is unprecedented that one of the weakest boards in the history of the Football Federation is seeking the removal of the president with outside pressure while the board has not made any meaningful efforts to improve matters within the federation. Nevertheless, it seems that the pressures on some members will force them to sign the dismissal form of Shahabuddin Azizi Khadem to pave the ground for his dismissal.

Political interference in FFIRI is quite normal. Iran has been sanctioned before by FIFA for such interventions, this time, however, the hierarchy has become wiser and used internal tools to achieve their goals.

In a move taken from the chapter of the way the football federations in the Persian Gulf Operate, the work is all being done legally (…)!  In that system, most executives of the football federations are either government appointees or state policy supporters, but all done under the cover of legitimacy without any government entity publicly getting involved. This, of course, is to avoid FIFA’s wrath and possible sanctions. The Iranians have learned this lesson and are copying the neighbors across the Persian Gulf.

 According to the official announcement by the spokesman of the Football Federation FFIRI, a meeting of the board members is scheduled to be held in the next 14 days to decide on the fate of Shahabuddin Azizi Khadem. The letter requesting a meeting was registered officially while the meeting date for the crucial meeting is yet to be decided.

FFIRI bans Hossein Kananizadegan for lack of ethics.

The Disciplinary and Ethics Committee of Iran’s Football Federation FFIRI has issued its verdict regarding the case against Team Melli central defender Hossein Kananizadegan.

“The committee has found Hossein Kananizadegan guilty as charged and fined one billion rials plus a two games ban for violating the ethical rules of football. The ban applies to National Team Games, Futsal, and Beach Soccer. Pursuant to paragraph 1 of Article 63 of the Code of Ethics and paragraph 4 of Article 103 of the Disciplinary Code, the ban and fine contained in the above ruling shall not prevent the execution or the suspension of the ruling as soon as the execution is issued and an appeal is filed. Also, if he has an appeal to file, the player should submit his objection to the ethics committee of the federation within one week from this date, observing the legal formalities mentioned in Article 63 of the ethics regulations regarding the appeal process”.  the ruling declared according to the FFIRI website.

Kananizadegan has been a subject of controversy and his inclusion in the two Team Melli games against Iraq and UAE has been found to be a fraudulent and crooked move by the federation. The notorious Knanizadegan, who always seems to be one step near trouble on and off the pitch has uttered profanity and insulting remarks against Estghelal club fans. The recording he made went viral and was condemned by a large swathe of journalists, fans, and footballers alike. Esteghlal club management filed an official complaint against him in December last year.

The defender will miss both the South Korea match away and the final match against Lebanon in Azadi.

The 27 years old Kananizadegan currently plays his football in Qatar Stars League with Al-Ahli

Yet, the FFIRI Disciplinary committee despite having all the incriminating evidence to prosecute the player, conveniently waited until the last two Team Melli matches then issued the disciplinary action!

The never ending lies and decption of the officials!

While the Omid Team is in turmoil and the scheduled team training in FIFA Day was not held due to the pending administrative and contractual issues ( non-payment of coaches salaries and not finalizing and signing of the contracts) which lead to the cancellation of the Omid Training Camp, the president of the football federation FFIRI and the president of the National Olympic Committee denied all those facts and turned them upside down claiming that Omid Team is progressing well

The camp of the national Olympic football team (Omid) was supposed to be held under the supervision of Mehdi Mahdavikia from the 25th January to the 1st February, but this camp was never commenced due to lack of necessary planning by the Football Federation and non-conclusion of the national team coaches contracts including Mehdi Mahdavikia himself and his assistants!

However, Shahabuddin Azizi Khadem, president of the Football Federation FFIRI, and Seyed Reza Salehi Amiri, president of the National Olympic Committee NOC, as the team’s trustees, denied any wrongdoing, saying that the National Olympic team had no problems whatsoever!!. “The Omid team is doing its job according to plan. We participated in the Central Asian Games and will go to Uzbekistan. This federation is different from the ones before in that it has already started the preparation of Omid team for the Paris Olympics, which we have already done,” Azizi Khadem said. “It was not like that before. I hope the Omid national team gets better conditions. We have to go to Uzbekistan for the final of the Asian Championship in June. We hope Mahdavikia will start working soon again according to the plans.”

          • Mahdavikia pays his assistants wages from his own pocket.
          • The one-week training camp in Kish Isle was canceled 
          • Director of communication of Omid Team resigns.
          • Azizi-Khadem in full denial

A day before this statement, Salehi Amiri had said: “I am in contact with Azizi Khadem. Mahdavikia is also seriously pursuing and organizing, and I personally believe that the Omid team, given its capacity in the football community and its presence. The well-respected coach that this team has, we will shine in Hangzhou.”

A few hours later after Sazlehi-Amiri’s statement and assurance, that the media director of the Omid national team submitted his resignation,

Pointing to many problems in the national Olympic (Omid) team in a text he posted on his personal Instagram page, the director said  “the contracts of the head coach and assistant coaches of the Omid national team have not been signed even after about five months from initial agreement on the contents. This is what was supposed to happen after the recent meeting of the Board of Directors of the Football Federation, but has not been done yet, and this is only one of the aggravations and problems of the technical staff of the Iranian U-23 national team.

“The non-payment of players’ bonuses, the cancellation of the national team camps (which was supposed to be held on Kish Island with matches against foreign teams) as well as the uncertainty of the team’s manager and coaches are among the events that led to the cancellation of the team’s recent camp. On hearing the cancellation of the camp, the foreign coaches did not travel to Iran!”

The media director wrote in his message that “Mahdavikia paid the salaries of his three foreign assistants out of his own pocket so that the non-commitment and lack of obligation in the football federation would not take on an international dimension!”

“Mahdavi’s Assistants had participated in the Asian Under-23 qualifiers from September to November 2021 without any contract. In this turbulent situation that is not hidden from anyone,”

Azizi Khadem and Salehi Amiri, with their lack of honesty, sweet talk their way on how their respective organizations are determined to succeed in the Asian U23 Championship and the Asian Games with such confidence to the degree of promising the fans to finally end the spell of consecutive failures of over 40 years of Omid Team failure to qualify for the Olympics. It looks like they both believe that by turning the facts upside down and living in denial, no one notices the shortcomings and broken promises, disrespect for the contracts. While it seems like a standard operating procedure for preparing the Omid or the Iranian Olympics team, and after about half a century, professional planning, commitment, financial support needed for the success of this team is still lacking big time. Instead, lies, denials, deception, and delusion is still rife from those inept personnel running football and other sports affair in Iran.

Like the Persian proverb goes “It’s the same soup and the same bowl”!