Iranian soccer players train with Australian team after being granted asylum

Two members of the Iranian women’s soccer team joined a training session with a professional club in Australia, in their first publicly shared appearance since they accepted a government offer of asylum.

Fatemeh Pasandideh and Atefeh Ramezanisadeh were among seven people — six players and one staff member — who initially accepted humanitarian visas to stay in Australia amid the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran. Five of them later changed their minds, joining the rest of the Iranian team in leaving Australia, where they had traveled for a regional tournament before the war began.

The saga drew widespread attention, including a public intervention from President Donald Trump.

The two women’s appearance at the training session Monday came as the rest of their team flew to Oman after arriving in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from Sydney last week.

Brisbane Roar said in a statement posted to social media that Pasandideh and Ramezanisadeh had been welcomed to train with its A-League Women squad.

“We remain committed to providing a supportive environment for them whilst they navigate the next stages,” CEO Kaz Patafta said.

Images and video shared by the club showed the two players smiling as they trained alongside the Roar’s players. Ramezanisadeh commented “Thank you for everything” on the post, while Pasandideh reshared the images and posted an image of herself alongside FIFA’s chief football officer Jill Ellis, accompanied by the words, “Everything will be fine.”

Concerns over the safety of the Iranian team arose after they stayed silent during their national anthem ahead of their opening game against South Korea at the Women’s Asian Cup on March 2, just two days after the United States and Israel began their war with Iran, killing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Iranian state television labeled the players “traitors,” and they sang the anthem in their two subsequent matches. They have not publicly commented on the war or their actions.

The Iranian Football Association said the team was expected to leave Malaysia for Tehran soon “to once again be embraced by their families and homeland.”

Windsor John, general secretary of the Asian Football Confederation, which organized the tournament in Australia, told The Associated Press that the team’s departure for Oman had been arranged by the Iranian Embassy and that it was not their final destination.

Asked whether the confederation considered the women safe in Iran, Windsor said it would be checking on them regularly via the Iranian football federation “as they are our girls as well.”

The Asian Football Confederation did not respond to a request for further comment Tuesday.