Iran allegedly used soccer clubs to spy on citizens, opposition group urges FIFA to ban team before World Cup

EXCLUSIVE: Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has allegedly utilized the country's shot strategy to spy connected citizens, perchance violating FIFA bylaws, according to a caller study from a large absorption party.

The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI)'s U.S. bureau provided the study to Fox News Digital. It outlines an alleged crippled for Iran’s shot federation and apical clubs to beryllium drawn into a broader authorities information apparatus, and that astatine slightest 15 IRGC commanders person been formally documented and identified successful shot nine management.

The NCRI, citing alleged authoritative IRGC documents, accuses the IRGC of utilizing clubs, stadium infrastructure and security-linked absorption posts to show fans, suppress dissenting athletes and interruption FIFA rules connected governmental interference.

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The study alleges facial-recognition exertion and different devices and tracking systems were utilized to show spectators. The study cites alleged interior Iranian information documents, including Tehran Province Security Council worldly from 2025 and a Sarallah Headquarters information program from 2024.

According to NCRI-US’s translations of those documents, officials discussed facial-recognition cameras astatine Azadi, Takhti and Shahr-e Qods stadiums; ticketing tied to Iran’s nationalist civil-registration database; seat-by-seat mapping of spectators by nationalist ID; monitoring and vetting of fan-club leaders; and designated constabulary staging areas oregon quick-reaction units wrong stadiums.

"It is highly captious for security, intelligence, and instrumentality enforcement agencies to utilize and exploit the video surveillance cameras of the Azadi Complex during matches, fixed the changeless imaginable for unpredictable information incidents. It is highly conceivable that aboriginal riots and civilian unrest could originate wrong the sports stadiums," the study said, quoting the documents.

Fox News Digital reached retired to the Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran and Iran’s ngo to the United Nations for comment.

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NCRI-US is the Washington bureau of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, an Iranian absorption conjugation that advocates replacing the Islamic Republic with what it describes arsenic a democratic, secular and non-nuclear republic. The radical says the worldly was obtained done the web wrong Iran of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran, oregon MEK, a large absorption question that Tehran considers an enemy.

Alireza Jafarzadeh, lawman manager of NCRI-US, told Fox News Digital that the enactment archetypal became focused connected stadium surveillance portion tracking however Iranian authorities identified protesters during caller uprisings.

"Our absorption was fundamentally successful presumption of the protests and seeing however the Iran authorities really [was] trying to place the protesters successful the streets, identifying the leaders of the protests," Jafarzadeh said. He said NCRI aboriginal realized, portion reviewing what helium described arsenic a ample batch of interior material, that "when it comes to a sports field, the Iran authorities has a peculiar attraction connected sports arsenic a means of repression."

Jafarzadeh added that Iranian shot stadiums are among the fewer spaces wherever ample numbers of young radical stitchery and explicit corporate emotion, making them a people for information forces. Soccer is Iran’s astir fashionable sport, and clubs specified arsenic Persepolis and Esteghlal gully monolithic followings.

According to NCRI’s report, minutes from a May 2025 Sports Commission gathering nether the Tehran Province Security Council discussed the request to equip aggregate Azadi, Takhti and Shahr-e Qods stadiums with facial-recognition cameras.

The aforesaid papers says practice from the Football Federation, the Football League Organization, Esteghlal and Persepolis was "strictly required" for the video surveillance task astatine Azadi Stadium, according to the NCRI. Another conception lists the president of Iran’s shot federation, Mehdi Taj, among officials copied for "executive implementation."

The study besides cited minutes from a aboriginal Tehran Province Security Council league saying officials discussed astute ticketing connected to Iran’s National Organization for Civil Registration, mandatory individuality verification, numbered seats matched to nationalist ID numbers, facial-recognition cameras, X-ray scanning machines and "fan cards" for pre-vetted instrumentality leaders.

Jafarzadeh said NCRI believes the intent of collecting specified accusation is to place radical who reason the authorities and alteration aboriginal arrests.

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Iranian shot supporters gathered astatine Enghelab Square successful Tehran connected May 13, 2026, for a ceremonial honoring the Iran nationalist shot squad up of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The lawsuit featured performances of anthems dedicated to the squad and the unveiling of the team's kit. (Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu)

"The accusation they got from the sports facilities, they utilized successful bid to place the radical who were opposed to the regime, and past aboriginal connected arrested them," Jafarzadeh said. "The authorities uses sports and diversion events successful bid to exert its repression connected the population."

The study further alleged that Iran’s shot strategy has been penetrated by IRGC and security-linked figures for decades. NCRI names astatine slightest 15 radical it describes arsenic IRGC oregon security-linked figures who person held elder positions successful clubs, federations, league absorption oregon sports bodies. Among them, the study identifies Taj arsenic a erstwhile IRGC quality serviceman who presently leads the Iran shot federation.

Official FIFA bylaws accidental subordinate associations indispensable "manage their affairs independently," guarantee their affairs are not influenced by 3rd parties, and that they beryllium "neutral successful matters of authorities and religion," "independent," and debar "any signifier of governmental interference."

Jafarzadeh said FIFA should expel Iran’s shot federation, comparing the lawsuit to planetary sports bans imposed connected apartheid-era South Africa.

Iranian shot supporters stitchery astatine Enghelab Square successful Tehran during a ceremonial for the Iran nationalist shot squad up of the 2026 FIFA World Cup connected May 13, 2026. (Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu)

"You cannot person a sports club, a sports facility, dominated with the military, which is portion of the Iran regime," helium said. "Sports federations, they person to beryllium capable to run autonomously autarkic of the government...

"My connection to FIFA is that bash precisely what you did with South Africa during the apartheid. The Iranian Football Federation that is controlled by the Revolutionary Guards indispensable beryllium expelled from FIFA."

FIFA besides says violations of that independency request tin pb to sanctions, adjacent if the extracurricular power was not the responsibility of the association.

Fox News Digital has reached retired to FIFA for comment.

The study besides accuses Iran of systematic sex favoritism successful sports, particularly restrictions connected women entering stadiums and authorities power implicit pistillate athletes’ uniforms.

Human Rights Watch reported successful 2022 that Iranian authorities blocked dozens of women from entering a shot stadium successful Mashhad. FIFA, however, has besides pointed to caller cases wherever women were allowed to be Iranian matches, including a 2024 women-only assemblage astatine a Persian Gulf Pro League lucifer successful Isfahan.

Rights groups accidental Iranian women proceed to look discriminatory barriers to stadium access.

Iranian shot supporters stitchery astatine Enghelab Square successful Tehran during a ceremonial for the Iran nationalist shot squad up of the 2026 FIFA World Cup connected May 13, 2026. Thousands attended the lawsuit wherever anthems dedicated to the nationalist squad were performed and the team's kit for the tourney was unveiled. (Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu)

Rights groups person documented cases successful which Iranian athletes faced punishment aft supporting oregon participating successful anti-government protests.

Habib Khabiri, a erstwhile famed Iran nationalist shot subordinate and squad captain, was listed successful a 1985 United Nations study among radical "allegedly summarily and arbitrarily executed" successful Iran successful 1984-1985. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported that Khabiri was arrested successful 1983, tortured successful situation and executed successful 1984 aft alleged ties to the Mojahedin-e Khalq.

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Jafarzadeh highlighted Khabiri arsenic a awesome of the regime’s repression of athletes, arsenic Khabiri was a rising shot prima who became skipper of Iran’s nationalist squad earlier being arrested and asked to look connected tv to renounce his governmental beliefs.

"He refused, and helium was executed connected June 21, 1984," Jafarzadeh said. "He became a awesome for each of the athletes."