World Cup 2022: Iran-USA, the illusion of football diplomacy

As thousands of Iranian men and women – risking their lives – protest against Tehran’s mandatory veiling, do the streets of the capital remember that it was happier twenty-four years ago? holidays? It was Sunday, June 21, 1998, when the Iranian national team defeated the American counterpart in the World Cup match held in Lyon. It was 1:30 a.m. in Tehran on Monday when the referee signaled the end of the game. write then the world. The capital turned into a party field. »

The fate of Doha 2022 has been tricky as World Cup history has offered a second Iran-USA clash that will be crucial for qualification to the last 16 on Tuesday 29 November at the Al Thumama Stadium.

In 1998, Tim-e Mel’s 2-1 victory in the first World Cup was more than just a footballing success. It is political, even if the weather is quite relaxed between the two rival countries. “A strong and arrogant opponent felt the bitter taste of defeat”The conservative leader of the Islamic Republic, Ali Khamenei, is proud. “Victory is a symbol of national unity” President Mohammad Khatami comments, more soberly.

Years later, the supreme leader, who is not known for his love of football, acknowledged this by kissing one of the two Iranian strikers, Hamid Reza Estili, on the forehead: “I didn’t want to get up and watch the game. It was a year ago. But when I saw the first few minutes, I decided to watch it to the end. »

Reconciliation between the two countries

In early 1998, President Khatami worked to bring the two countries closer together. “Tear down the wall of distrust. » Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, who was at the Gerland Stadium, confirmed on the morning of the match that the United States could Consider the prospect of a very different relationship with Iran since the changes in 1997..

Opportunistic, FIFA then sought to capitalize on the image of a unifying football that transcended diplomatic barriers. Protocol has been modified to allow the two teams to pose together for the traditional pre-match photo. The world football body announced “Fair Play Day”: each Iranian player offers a bouquet of white flowers to one of the opposing players.

Before the meeting in Lyon in the summer, the Iranian federation politely declined an invitation to play warm-up matches in California, which has a large community of Iranian descent; “The calendar is too full, the distance is too long”Its leader Mohsen Safai Farahani justifies.

Instead, the Iranian players trained in Brittany in March 1998. Franco-Iranian director Jamshid Golmakan is making his first documentary film. Iran, football and business, where he portrays the belly dancing of some locals hoping to strike business deals with the ambassador of the Islamic Republic. During the World Cup, he made a second film in Isingo, the base camp of the Iranians: Iran, football, everyone’s problem.

For Golmakhan, the geopolitical aspect of this Iran-U.S “Really, neither the fans nor the players were interested, but the two states, the two governments with their usual political game.” The director collects the words of Iranian exiles: “We are not interested in football. We are here to tell the Western media: ‘Don’t portray Iranians every time as fundamentalists, murderers, terrorists.'”

Iran’s opponents will not allow the political platform they offer. In Lyon, on the day of the match, seven sympathizers of the Iranian opposition movement “People’s Mujahideen” were arrested. In the morning, about thirty others were prevented from entering French territory. “The main opposition group abroad, the People’s Mujahideen [peuple] showed secretlyJamshid Golmakan recalls. Some went into the lawn. They drew a portrait of their leader and chanted slogans against the Ayatollahs and the authorities in Iran during the meeting. »

The heroes of 1998 become objects of propaganda

Thousands of miles away, in San Jose, California, an 11-year-old boy is watching the game with his family. He is American, both parents are Iranian. Fifteen years later today, 35-year-old Steven Beitashour will become the first Iranian-American to wear a Tim-e melli jersey. “It was a fun and exciting game. It was a win for meThe one who has been a professional football player since 2007 smiles. This was the beginning of international recognition of Iranian football. Some have made great careers like Mehdi Mahdavikia [à Hambourg et Francfort]. »

In 2014, Portuguese coach Carlos Queiroz will even call Beitashour to compete in the World Cup in Brazil. The Californian received a warm welcome in his first match – a friendly – in Iran, when he was a substitute. He came down from the stands “Welcome to Iran” and “Put Beitashur”. “I have never experienced this before.he says. It was an honor to see these guys singing my name. »

Khodadad Aziz or Ali Dai – who today supports the uprising of Iranian women – took over the Iranian regime. “Ayatollahs use this kind of Islamic-political propaganda to an extreme extentAnalyzes Golmakan. After qualifying for the 1998 World Cup against Australia, they arranged for the team to make a pilgrimage to Mecca in a private jet. »

Jalal Tabeli, the coach of this famous victory, has slipped back into anonymity. When he replaced Croatia’s Tomislav Ivić a few weeks before the World Cup, he had already lived since 1983… in the United States with his family.

Sometimes excessive, this football diplomacy often does not go beyond the framework of symbolism, communication or propaganda. This new World Cup match between Iran and the United States – whoever wins – can never replace real negotiations. In June, the Americans and Iranians met in Doha to discuss the thorny nuclear issue. Six months from now, the captains of Tim-e melli and Team USA will not be talking about uranium enrichment or the repression in Iran, but simply football.