in a suffocating climate, the United States eliminates Iran

There was a strange atmosphere on Tuesday evening near the Al-Thumama stadium. A heavy atmosphere, sometimes violent, which was not only due to the stakes of a decisive match between two teams for a qualification in the round of 16 of a World Cup.

In the Qatari night, the United States snatched in a suffocating climate – outside and on the ground – a short and decisive success against Iran, thanks to a goal from their star Christian Pulisic (1-0). At the end of the long stoppages of play, the American fans were finally able to make their voices heard. “USA, USA”covered until then by the very large Iranian public, which produced a deafening and constant sound level throughout the meeting.

And it was the “Boys” – the second youngest team in the tournament, with an average age of 25.15 – who won the right to face the Netherlands on Saturday in the second round. This is a third consecutive qualification in the round of 16, after those of 2010 and 2014. In 2018, American footballers stayed at home.

Relive the game: Iran – United States: the Americans win and will play against the Dutch in the round of 16

Attacks at the end of the match

This meeting was nothing like a classic match. First, because these two states maintain complicated diplomatic relations. But also because of the current context in Iran: since the beginning of the Iranian women’s revolt, at least 452 demonstrators have been killed and more than 18,000 detained, according to Human Rights Activists in Iran.

The players of the Iranian selection have suffered the consequences since the start of the tournament, their behavior has been spied on and they have been confronted with political questions from the foreign media. After remaining silent at the start of the match against England, they also sang their anthem before playing against Wales, then again against the United States. Under duress and threats from the regime, according to information from Tehran.

Read also: World Cup 2022: Iran – United States, the illusion of football diplomacy

Prior to the encounter, Qatari police forces patrolled in numbers. And a funny thing happened. Men approached when Iranian supporters answered interviews, monitoring the comments. Faraj, a 61-year-old Iranian-American, testifies to this: “SIf you look around the stadium, you can see that the Iranian regime has sent a lot of agents here. There are hundreds of them. They are recognized by the way they are dressed and the way they behave. »

The checks were tougher than in the first match, when many Iranians were able to show their support for the women of their country. “For this third match, the authorities are extremely well organised. I had to remove my “Women Life Freedom” sticker. But I had another one and I glued it back together”says Faraj.

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