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Australian Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke announced at a press conference on Tuesday that another Iranian soccer player and a member of the team’s staff had accepted asylum in Australia amid fears of being punished upon returning to Iran after five players accepted asylum on Sunday.
Burke added that almost all of the Iranian players and many support staff were taken aside, individually, as they passed through Australian Customs at an airport before boarding their flight back to Iran.
And each of them were given the opportunity to accept an offer of asylum without the presence of Iranian state officials, but other players or staff accepted the offer to stay.
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Iranian players react during their national anthem before a Women’s Asian Cup soccer match against the Philippines in Robina, Australia, Sunday, March 8, 2026. (Image by Dave Hunt/AAP via AP)
The asylum claims came amid increased pressure on Monday from President Donald Trump and Iranian groups in Australia.
“Australia is making a terrible humanitarian error by allowing the Iranian women’s national soccer team will be forced to return to Iran, where they will most likely be killed. Don’t do it, Mr. Prime Minister, give ASYLUM. “America will accept them if you don’t,” Trump wrote in Truth Social.
Trump later wrote: “I just spoke with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of Australia about the Iranian women’s national soccer team.
“He’s on it! Five have already been cared for and the rest are on the way. Some, however, feel they must return because they are worried about the safety of their families, including threats to those family members if they don’t return. In any case, the Prime Minister is doing a very good job in this rather delicate situation. God bless Australia!”
The team arrived in Australia before Israel and the The United States launched a joint offensive against Iran on February 28. The attacks led to the death of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
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Iranian players during their national anthem before the Women’s Asian Cup soccer match against the Philippines in Robina, Australia, Sunday, March 8, 2026. (Dave Hunt/AAPImage via AP)
iranian players He refused to sing his national anthem before an initial defeat to South Korea on March 2, which was seen by some as an act of resistance branded by one Iranian commentator as the “pinnacle of dishonour”.
The team did not qualify, but players sang the anthem and saluted before their losses to Australia and the Philippines.
“These women are tremendously popular in Australia, but we realize they are in a terribly difficult situation with the decisions they are making,” Burke said. “They will continue to have the opportunity to speak to Australian officials if they wish.”
The Australian Iranian Council launched an online petition urging Australian authorities to “ensure that no member of Iran’s women’s national football team leaves Australia while credible fears remain for their safety.”
“When there is credible evidence that visiting athletes may face persecution, imprisonment, coercion or worse upon their return, silence is not a neutral position,” the petition adds. “The current war environment has intensified the repression, fear and risks faced by anyone publicly perceived as disloyal to the Islamic Republic.”
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Iranian players pose for a team photo before a Women’s Asian Cup soccer match against the Philippines in Robina, Australia, Sunday, March 8, 2026. (Dave Hunt/AAPImage via AP, File)
Iran head coach Marziyeh Jafari was quoted by Australia’s national news agency that the team wants to “return to Iran as soon as we can.”
