Iran players line up during the national anthems before the match. (Reuters)

Iran vs USA: Sporting spectacle with a geopolitical twist

Two days prior to their crucial group-stage encounter against the United States at the FIFA World Cup, the Iranian football federation called for the disqualification of their opponents.

The reason: the US Soccer Federation (USSF) posted an image of a doctored Iranian flag, without the country’s official emblem, on social media. The two posts were later taken down, but per The New York Times, the US confirmed the omission was intentional, meant as a show of support for the women in Iran.

Iran’s famed no-nonsense coach Carlos Queiroz shot back in his pre-match press conference. “We have said many times that we have solidarity of all humanitarian causes,” he was quoted as saying by The Guardian. “But we have solidarity with causes all over the world whoever they are. If you talk human rights, racism, kids dying at schools from shooting, we have solidarity with all. But we bring a smile for 90 minutes, that is our mission.” (READ MORE)

The fans screamed for Qatar. Their passion hid a secret

Brazlian fans cheer at the World Cup in Doha, Qatar, Monday, Nov. 29, 2022. (Erin Schaff/The New York Times)

Midway through the second half of Qatar’s match against Senegal at the World Cup, the drumming stopped as a man in a bucket hat and sunglasses rose and asked for quiet.

Moments earlier, a section of the crowd — more than 1,000 strong, almost all men, all of them in identical maroon T-shirts with the word “Qatar” in English and Arabic — had been chanting in unison at the direction of four fan leaders. But now the sea of men understood what was expected, and they followed the order and fell into a strange silence as the match noise swirled around them inside Al Thumama Stadium. (Read More)