DOHA, Qatar — The U.S. soccer federation briefly displayed Iran’s national flag on social media without the emblem of the Islamic Republic, saying the move supports protesters in Iran ahead of the two nations’ World Cup match Tuesday.
Iran’s government reacted by accusing America of removing the name of God from their national flag.
The decision by the U.S. Soccer Federation adds yet-another political firestorm to the Middle East’s first World Cup, one which organizers had hoped would be spared of off-the-field controversies.
It also comes as the U.S. faces Iran in a decisive World Cup match, which was already freighted by the decades of enmity between the two countries and the nationwide protests now challenging Tehran’s theocratic government.
The U.S. Soccer Federation said in a statement Sunday morning that it decided to forego the official flag on social media accounts to show “support for the women in Iran fighting for basic human rights.”
The Twitter account of the U.S. men’s team displayed a banner with the squad’s matches in the group stage, with the Iranian flag only bearing its green, white and red colors. The same could be seen in a post on its Facebook and Instagram accounts laying out the point totals so far in its group.
By Sunday afternoon, the normal flag with the emblem had been restored in the Twitter banner as attention to it grew.
“We wanted to show our support for the women in Iran with our graphic for 24 hours,” the federation said.
The U.S. Soccer Federation displayed the official Iranian flag in a graphic showing Group B standings on its website.
The brief absence of the emblem comes as monthslong demonstrations have challenged Iran’s government since the Sept. 16 death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who had been detained by the country’s morality police.
The protests have seen at least 450 people killed since they started, as well as over 18,000 arrested, according to Human Rights Activists in Iran, an advocacy group following the demonstrations.
Iran’s mission to the United Nations and its soccer federation did not respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press. As comments raged online, Iranian state television described the U.S. federation as “removing the symbol of Allah” from the Iranian flag.