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Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran

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Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran
AFC
Short nameFFIRI
Founded1920; 106 years ago (1920)[1]
HeadquartersTehran, Iran
FIFA affiliation1948
AFC affiliation1954[2]
CAFA affiliation2015
PresidentMehdi Taj[3]
Websitewww.ffiri.ir Edit this at Wikidata

The Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran (FFIRI; Persian: فدراسیون فوتبال جمهوری اسلامی ایران, romanized: Fedrasion-e Football-e Jomhuri-e Eslami-e Iran) is the governing body for football in Iran. It was founded in 1920.[4] The federation has been a member of FIFA since 1948[5] and a member of the Asian Football Confederation since 1958.[citation needed]

History

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The federation was founded in 1920,[4] has been a member of FIFA since 1948, and a member of the Asian Football Confederation since 1954.

In 2001, Iran was a founding member of the West Asian Football Federation, along with Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, and Syria.[citation needed]

In 2014, Iran was a founding member of the Central Asian Football Association alongside Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.[6]

Controversies

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On 23 November 2006, the federation was suspended by FIFA,[7] due to government interference in football matters. FIFA rules decree that a national football federation should remain autonomous from the national government. However, on 17 December 2006, the ban was lifted and a new Transitory Board was composed.

During the 2009 Iranian election protests, seven members of the Iran national football team were initially reported to have been banned for life by the federation for wearing green armbands in support of the Iranian Green Movement.[8]

Iran women's national football team was briefly suspended by FIFA from international competition in 2011 for being required by the federation to wear headscarves.[9][10]

In 2015, the federation banned players from the men's national team due to conscription problems.[11][12]

In August 2017, the federation banned Masoud Shojaei and Ehsan Hajsafi from the national team after they played against the Israeli club Maccabi Tel Aviv in the UEFA Europa League.[13]

On 9 November 2018 Fatma Samoura, Secretary General of International Federation of Football Association FIFA said she would ask the Iranian government to end the ban on women's entry to sports stadiums.[14] On 7 August 2019, Mohammad Jafar Montazeri, prosecutor general of Iran, supporting the ban, said that it should not concern FIFA if women in Iran can enter sports stadiums or not.[15] However, after continuous pressure from FIFA, IRNA deputy Sports Minister Jamshid Taghizadeh said women would be allowed to enter Azadi Stadium to watch the men's World Cup 2022 qualifier match between Iran and Cambodia in October.[16] However, in March 2022, Iranian women were again banned from entering the stadium for a World Cup qualifier.[17]

During the 2022 FIFA World Cup as well as the 2023 AFC Asian Cup, the Iranian government and federation reportedly sent paid members of the Basij and IRGC to cheer for the team in the stands and to counter protesters.[18][19]

In April 2024, goalkeeper Hossein Hosseini was summoned, suspended, and fined by the Iranian federation for hugging a female fan.[20][21][22] In October 2024, Zahra Ghanbari was suspended and forced to apologize by the Iranian federation for "improper hijab" during a goal celebration at the 2024–25 AFC Women's Champions League.[23] In December 2024, defender Ramin Rezaeian was summoned by the federation as well after hugging a female fan.[24]

Prior to the 2026 FIFA World Cup draw, a group stage match scheduled to be played in Seattle was designated as a "Pride Match" by the City of Seattle to coincide with the city's annual Pride celebrations and to promote LGBTQ+ inclusion.[25] Following the draw, the fixture was confirmed to be the match between Iran and Egypt. Both Iran and Egypt are countries where homosexuality is criminalized under domestic law, with Iran in particular having imposed capital punishment in certain cases.[26] The Iranian Football Federation and the Egyptian Football Association objected to the match's designation; however, FIFA and local organizers confirmed that associated LGBTQ+ events would proceed, and that rainbow flags would be permitted inside the stadium.[27][28]

In January 2026, multiple Iranian footballers and athletes were killed during the 2026 Iran massacres amid the 2025–2026 Iranian protests, including former Tractor Sazi F.C. midfielder Mojtaba Tarshiz, prompting former Iran national team captain Masoud Shojaei to criticise FIFA for its silence over the killing of Iranian athletes during protests, while then-captain Mehdi Taremi expressed solidarity with the Iranian people.[29][30][31] On 14 January, the federation, along with the Islamic Republic of Iran Wrestling Federation, were exempt from posting a picture to their Instagram accounts opposing Donald Trump's threats to attack Iran for its response to the protests, and also claiming that athletes were killed during the Israel–Iran War.[32] After the massacres, the AFC ruled that Iranian clubs cannot host AFC Champions League Elite and AFC Champions League Two matches at home, and would therefore have to move them to neutral venues.[33] Following the massacres, activists called on FIFA to ban the Iranian national team from the 2026 FIFA World Cup.[34][35] Ali Karimi, a former footballer for the Iran national team, along with a coalition of prominent Iranians, wrote an open letter to FIFA and all its member associations, calling on FIFA president Gianni Infantino to speak up on the protest deaths.[36] Following the protests and ensuing crackdown, the Spanish Football Federation reportedly pulled out of a planned friendly match with Iran.[37] After a number of players resigned from the Iran women's national football team and refereeing organization following the massacres, the Iranian football federation reportedly threatened them with multi-year bans from professional football activities, judicial action, and long prison sentences.[38]

Competitions

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Men's

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Women's

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Membership

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Organization Affiliation Notes
FIFA Since 1950; 76 years ago (1950) N/a
AFC Since 1954; 72 years ago (1954) N/a
WAFF 2001–2014; 13 years Founding member
CAFA Since 2015; 11 years ago (2015)

Presidents

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Old Logo of the Iran Football Federation (until 1979)[citation needed]
Jersey badge of Team Melli at the 1978 FIFA World Cup[39]
Presidency [40] President Took office Left office Note
1 Ali Kani 1947 1950 Runners-up of 1951 Asian Games
2 Hedayatollah Gilanshah 1950 1952 Commander of Imperial Iranian Air Force (1952)
3 Mohsen Haddad 1952
4 Hossein Siasi 1952 1953
(3) Mohsen Haddad 1953 1954 second term
(4) Hossein Siasi 1954 second term
(1) Ali Kani 1954 1955 second term
5 Mostafa Salimi 1955 1956
6 Hossein-Ali Mobasher 1956 1958
7 Mostafa Mokri 1958 1960
8 Zabih Khabiri 1960 1961
9 Hossein Soroudi 1961 1962
(6) Hossein-Ali Mobasher 1962 1967 second term
qualified to 1964 Olympics
Runners-up of 1966 Asian Games
(9) Hossein Soroudi 1967 1968 second term
(7) Mostafa Mokri 1968 1972 second term
winner of 1968 Asian Cup and 1972 Asian Cup
qualified to 1972 Olympics
10 Kambiz Atabay 1972 1979 Presidents of AFC
(1 August 1976 - 9 December 1978)
qualified to 1978 World Cup
qualified to 1976 Olympics
winner of 1976 Asian Cup
Founder of Takht Jamshid Cup
winner of 1974 Asian Games
11 Naser Noamooz 1979 1980 first president after Revolution
qualified to 1980 Olympics but boycotted the event
Third place of 1980 Asian Cup
12 Hadi Tavoosi 1980 1981
13 Hossein Abshenasan 1981
14 Hossein Raghfar 1981 1982 youngest president of FFIRI ever at 28 years old[41]
(13) Hossein Abshenasan 1982 1983 second term
15 Behrooz Sahabeh 1984
16 Nasrollah Sajjadi 1985
17 Ali Mohammad Mortazavi 1986 1987
18 Mohammad Reza Pahlavan 1987 1989 Third place of 1988 Asian Cup
(11) Naser Noamooz 1989 1993 second term
winner of 1990 Asian Games
Founder of Azadegan League
19 Mohammad Safizadeh 1993 1994
20 Amir Abedini 1994 chairman of Persepolis
(1993—2001)
21 Dariush Mostafavi 1994 1997 Third place of 1996 Asian Cup
22 Mohsen Safaei Farahani 1997 2002 qualified to 1998 World Cup
winner of 1998 Asian Games and 2002 Asian Games
Founder of Iran Pro League
winner of 1998 FIFA Fair Play Award
member of Iranian Parliament (2000-2004)
23 Mohammad Dadkan 2002 2006 Third place of 2004 Asian Cup
qualified to 2006 World Cup
Third place of 2006 Asian Games
(22) Mohsen Safaei Farahani 2006 2008 second term
interim, appointed by FIFA
24 Ali Kafashian 2008 2016[42] qualified to 2014 World Cup
2008 and 2012 Best Asian Football Federation of the Year [43]
25 Mehdi Taj 2016[44] 2019[45] qualified to 2018 World Cup
— Heydar Baharvand (acting) 2019 2021
26 Shahaboddin Azizi Khadem 2021 2022 qualified to 2022 World Cup
Dismissal due to incompetence
— Mirshad Majedi (acting) 2022
(25) Mehdi Taj 2022 Present second and third term
# President Stability[46]
1 Ali Kafashian 8 years and 4 months
2 Kambiz Atabay 7 years and 6 months
3 Mehdi Taj 7 years and 1 months
4 Mohsen Safaei Farahani 4 years and 9 months
5 Mostafa Mokri 4 years and 6 months
6 Hossein-Ali Mobasher 4 years
7 Naser Noamooz 3 years and 10 months
8 Mohammad Dadkan 3 years and 9 months
9 Ali Kani 3 years and 7 months

Board members

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As of 1 March 2025.
Position Name
President Mehdi Taj
General Secretary Hedayat Mombeyni
First Vice President Mahdi Mohammadnabi
Second Vice President Heydar Baharvand
Third Vice President and Women Section Farideh Shojaei
Representative of Provincial Football Boards Tahmoures Heydari
Representative of Provincial Football Boards Ali Taheri
Representative of Club chairpersons Ali Khatir
Representative of Club chairpersons Mohammad Esfandiarpour
Board Member Farzin Dabiri Oskuei
Board Member Hojjat Karimi
Board Member Mohammad-Rahman Salari

National teams

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Head coach: Amir Ghalenoei

Head coach: Reza Enayati

Head coach: Samad Marfavi

Head coach: Hossein Abdi

  • Iran national under-15 football team

Head coach: Ali Doustimehr

Head coach: Vahid Shamsaei

Head coach: Ali Sanei

Head coach: Ali Naderi

Head coach: Maryam Azmoon

Head coach: TBD

Head coach: TBD

Head coach: Shadi Mahini

Head coach: TBD

References

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  1. ^ History of Iran’s Football Archived 2016-07-31 at the Wayback Machine, ffiri.ir
  2. ^ "Asian soccer championship next year". The Straits Times. 27 May 1954."ASIAN SOCCER FINALS IN SINGAPORE May be used as Olympic series". The Singapore Free Press. 5 October 1954."Singapore to Meet Indonesia in Asian Soccer Tourney". The Straits Times. 14 June 1955. Archived from the original on 31 January 2013. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
  3. ^ "Mehdi Taj elected as head of Iran football federation". Tehran Times. 2022-08-30. Retrieved 2022-09-09.
  4. ^ a b "Member Association – Iran". Archived from the original on June 3, 2007.
  5. ^ "LA SUISSE ORGANISERA LA COUPE DU MONDE 1954". Le Courrier (in French). 28 July 1948.
  6. ^ "'Central Zone' gets thumbs up from Tajikistan". Archived from the original on 12 June 2014.
  7. ^ "FIFA suspends Iran Football Federation". fifa.com. Archived from the original on May 11, 2012. Retrieved 17 March 2018.
  8. ^ Clayton, Andy (24 June 2009). "Iran soccer players banned from national team after wearing green pro-opposition wristbands". NY Daily News. New York. Archived from the original on 31 August 2009. Retrieved 8 July 2010.
  9. ^ "Iran women's soccer team thwarted by hijab ban". CBS News. 7 June 2011. Retrieved 2012-09-19.
  10. ^ "Iran's women soccer team banned from Olympics, because of headscarves". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2012-09-19.
  11. ^ "Mehrdad Pooladi saved by FIFA !". TeamMelli. Archived from the original on 2015-11-21. Retrieved 2015-09-04.
  12. ^ "Team Melli unable to use players under Military Service. – TeamMelli". www.teammelli.com. Archived from the original on 25 August 2015. Retrieved 17 March 2018.
  13. ^ Erdbrink, Thomas (10 August 2017). "Iran Bans Two Soccer Stars for Playing Against Israelis". The New York Times. Retrieved 17 March 2018.
  14. ^ FIFA To Engage With Iran To Lift Ban On Women In Stadiums
  15. ^ "Iran judge: Ban on women in football stadiums does not concern FIFA". DPAInternational. Archived from the original on 8 August 2019. Retrieved 7 August 2019.
  16. ^ "Iran Agrees to Let Women Watch Soccer World Cup Qualifier". Truly. Archived from the original on 28 August 2019. Retrieved 25 August 2019.
  17. ^ "Iran again bans women from football stadium – Al-Monitor: Independent, trusted coverage of the Middle East". www.al-monitor.com. 30 March 2022. Retrieved 2022-11-25.
  18. ^ "IranWire Exclusive: Hundreds of Basij to Cheer Iranian Football Team in Qatar". Retrieved 12 March 2024.
  19. ^ "Iranian Football "Supporters" Sent To Qatar Earn up to $100 Daily". Retrieved 12 March 2024.
  20. ^ "Iran suspends and fines its international goalkeeper after he hugged a woman at the end of a match". 23 April 2024.
  21. ^ "Iranian Goalie Faces Court After Hugging Female Fan". 23 April 2024.
  22. ^ "Esteghlal keeper Hosseini sanctioned for hugging female fan". 22 April 2024.
  23. ^ "Iranian Footballer Suspended and Forced to Apologize for Headscarf Mishap".
  24. ^ "Iran football federation summons player after hugging female fan". 27 December 2024.
  25. ^ Smith, Emma (December 8, 2025). "2026 World Cup: 'Pride Match' to feature Egypt and Iran - where homosexuality is illegal". BBC Sport. Retrieved December 9, 2025.
  26. ^ Mesa, Jesus. "World Cup pride match to feature two countries that prosecute gays". Newsweek. Retrieved 2025-12-10.
  27. ^ Fassihi, Farnaz (December 9, 2025). "Seattle Plans Pride Match at Soccer World Cup, Infuriating Iran and Egypt". The New York Times. Retrieved December 10, 2025.
  28. ^ MacInnes, Paul. "LGBTQ+ events to go ahead at World Cup game despite Egypt and Iran objections". The Guardian.
  29. ^ "Iranian footballers killed in protests as former national team captain slams FIFA silence". Euronews. 15 January 2026. Retrieved 15 January 2026.
  30. ^ "Iran's footballers face battle to be heard as regime brutally clamps down on protests". The Guardian. 14 January 2026. Retrieved 15 January 2026.
  31. ^ "Geopolitical football: Iran? Trump? How the game can stand strong in a fractured world". The Guardian. 15 January 2026. Retrieved 15 January 2026.
  32. ^ https://iranwire.com/fa/news-1/147284استوریهای-اجباری-فدراسیونهای-ورزشی-علیه-دونالد-ترامپ-فدراسیون-فوتبال-مستثنی-شد/[dead link]
  33. ^ "Iran's bid for normalcy via sport: Matches return but players refuse the script". Iran International. 25 January 2026.
  34. ^ "Kick Iran out of Olympics, World Cup for execution of over 30 athletes, activists demand". 7 February 2026.
  35. ^ "مخالفان خواستار اخراج جمهوری اسلامی از المپیک و جام جهانی به دلیل اعدام ورزشکاران هستند". 7 February 2026.
  36. ^ Aarons, Ed (January 26, 2026). "Iran football great Ali Karimi leads call for Infantino to speak up on protest deaths". The Guardian. Retrieved February 8, 2026.
  37. ^ "Spain pulls out of soccer match with Iran's national team - report". 12 February 2026.
  38. ^ https://www.iranintl.com/en/202602195238
  39. ^ "Historical Football Kits - World Cup 1978". historicalkits.co.uk. Retrieved 22 October 2013.
  40. ^ "شناسنامه کامل روسای تاریخ فدراسیون فوتبال :: ورزش سه". www.varzesh3.com. Retrieved 17 March 2018.
  41. ^ پارسینه (4 March 2012). "سی و سومین رئیس فوتبال کیست". پارسینه-Parsine. Retrieved 17 March 2018.
  42. ^ "ورزش". Etemaad.com. Retrieved 2009-12-02.
  43. ^ "فدراسیون فوتبال ایران برترین فدراسیون آسیا". ffiri.ir. Archived from the original on 4 October 2011. Retrieved 17 March 2018.
  44. ^ "مهدی تاج رئیس فدراسیون فوتبال شد". varzesh3.com. Retrieved 2016-05-07.
  45. ^ "Mehdi Taj resigns as head of Iran football federation". Tehran Times. 29 December 2019.
  46. ^ "100 ماه ریاست کفاشیان در فدراسیون فوتبال :: ورزش سه". www.varzesh3.com. Retrieved 17 March 2018.
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