Iranian football legend Ali Karimi has emerged as a powerful voice calling for international football authorities to take action against the violent suppression of protests in his homeland. In a poignant open letter, Karimi and other prominent figures with connections to Iranian football have urged FIFA president Gianni Infantino to publicly condemn the killing, arrest, and intimidation of athletes in Iran.
Open Letter Demands FIFA Intervention
The letter, which is also addressed to the presidents of FIFA's more than 200 national associations, represents a significant collective statement from within Iran's sporting community. Among the twenty signatories are four former full international players, including Karimi himself, who earned 127 caps for Iran, alongside a football coach, a referee, and several respected sports journalists.
The document starkly describes how a "nationwide, popular, and civic movement" has been met by Iranian authorities with what it terms "systematic repression, mass killings, and actions that constitute clear instances of crimes against humanity and war crimes."
Athletes Among the Victims
The letter highlights the tragic toll on the football community, citing reports that place the overall death toll from recent protests at more than 18,000. It names several athletes who have lost their lives, painting a harrowing picture of the risks faced by those who speak out.
Among the victims listed is Mojtaba Tarshiz, a former top-division player who leaves behind two young children. The list also includes Saba Rashtian, an assistant referee in women's football; youth coach Mehdi Lavasani; footballers Amirhossein Mohammadzadeh and Ribin Moradi; and Mohammad Hajipour, the goalkeeper for Iran's national beach soccer team.
Particular concern is raised for Amirhassan Ghaderzadeh, a 19-year-old footballer with Sepahan Isfahan. His family has reportedly been informed that he faces an imminent risk of execution due to his participation in protests, a case that was condemned by the US State Department last week after being highlighted by Amnesty International.
Karimi's Personal Stand
Ali Karimi, who enjoyed a storied career including a spell with Bayern Munich, has become one of the most prominent sporting figures supporting Iran's protest movement. In an interview, he stated that Iranians have paid "heavy prices, such as their lives and their freedom" for basic rights over decades.
"I have always considered myself one of the people," Karimi told the Guardian. "Now that our country is going through one of its most sensitive and sorrowful periods, the least I can do is be the voice of my people." He described protesters as "more hopeful than ever" in their pursuit of "freedom and democracy through the ballot box."
Karimi's activism has come at personal cost. In 2022, he accused Iranian authorities of attempting to kidnap him and threatening his family after he publicly supported anti-government protests. He subsequently moved to the United States in 2023 after Iranian security forces briefly seized his family home.
Broader Sporting Repression
The letter's signatories note that a nationwide shutdown of internet and telephone communications has made it difficult to verify the full extent of deaths and arrests. They report that several members of the football community have been arrested upon entering Iran for expressing their opinions and have had their passports confiscated.
The repression extends beyond football. The Guardian has been informed of at least 22 athletes from other sports, including basketball, rock climbing, wrestling, and taekwondo, who have been killed for participating in protests. Massoud Zatparvar, a two-time World Classic Bodybuilding champion, was killed during protests in Rasht, Gilan province.
In his last Instagram post before his account was deleted, Zatparvar wrote: "We only want our rights, the voice that has been stifled for 40 years must be shouted out."
A Call to Football's Conscience
The open letter makes a direct appeal to FIFA's leadership and moral authority. "Football, as the most influential social phenomenon in the world, cannot and must not remain silent in the face of executions, killings, arbitrary arrests, and threats against athletes," it states.
The group calls on FIFA and national football federations to take several concrete actions:
- Publicly condemn the killings, arrests, and threats against Iranian athletes
- Demand an immediate halt to these actions
- Use all available legal and disciplinary mechanisms to protect Iranian football figures
- Affirm that peaceful protest and expression of personal opinions are fundamental human rights
The letter concludes with a powerful warning: "Silence in the face of these crimes amounts to abandoning the very principles that global football claims to defend."
Sources within Iran suggest that authorities are using CCTV footage from shops to compile evidence against protest participants. The deaths of prominent athletes often receive widespread coverage in state-run media, which one anonymous source described as a deliberate strategy: "All they try to do is to create fear. They want to say: 'This is what we do to the athletes, this is what we do to the celebrities, this is what we do to the biggest names. What do you think we can do to you?'"
FIFA has been approached for comment regarding the open letter and the serious allegations it contains. The world football governing body now faces increasing pressure to respond to what signatories describe as a fundamental challenge to the sport's professed values of fairness, respect, and human dignity.
