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An absolute honor

Iranian striker Karim Ansarifard said it was an honor to play in front of female fans at the World Cup – women were banned from major stadiums in Iran after the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Ansarifard said: “In any case, this is an honor for myself, for my country, for my people, for my teammates, everyone. It’s an absolute honor no matter who comes into the stadium, whether it’s our fathers, our brothers, our men or women.

“It’s always an honor to represent our country, we play for them, we play for all the men and women from our country. When I say people from our country, there are no exceptions. These people include all men and all women.

“It’s always an honor for me, an honor for my teammates, there are absolutely no exceptions. I wanted to thank you for asking this question.

“With all due respect to all supporters around the world, Iran has one of the best fans, supporters around the world.

“All Iranian fans are known around the world for being very passionate and very loyal to the teams, not just the national football team but all national teams even at club level. We have very passionate fans, they are famous for that and we are very proud of that.”