Turmoil at home swirls around Iran team ahead of World Cup

By GRAHAM DUNBAR
AP Sports Writer

GENEVA (AP) — Political issues are swirling around the Iran men’s soccer team amid turmoil on the streets at home after the death of 22-year-old woman Mahsa Amini. It’s happening just weeks before the World Cup in Qatar where Iran will play the United States, Wales and England. Two weeks of demonstrations in Iran and a violent crackdown by state authorities followed Amini’s death in the custody of the morality police. Players have taken a stance this week at a warmup game in Austria and on social media. A women’s fans group has urged FIFA to expel Iran from the World Cup in November.