Amna Nawaz
@PBSNewsHour·5.3M subscribers·62.2K videos
6 of Iran's women soccer team accept asylum in Australia
Posted
March 12, 2026
Views
5,352
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95
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March 12, 2026
5,352
95
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1:32Now PlayingSeven members of Iran's national women's soccer team remain in Australia, an Australian government official said Wednesday, as the rest of their teammates head back to a country now at the center of a widening war.
The players had traveled to Australia for the Asian Women's Cup just before the war started.
Six of the women have accepted humanitarian visas that will allow them to remain in Australia for good. A seventh who had initially sought asylum has since decided to return to Iran, a decision supported by Australia's home affairs minister.
Iran's sports minister also told state television Wednesday that "under no circumstances" would the men's team participate in this summer's soccer World Cup, which is being hosted by the U.S., Mexico and Canada.
Those comments came hours after FIFA's president, Gianni Infantino, said that President Donald Trump told him Iran would be welcome.
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