The last time Iran faced the United States at the World Cup, back in 1998, the streets of Tehran erupted in celebration after Iran won. This time around, feelings are much more complicated. Iranians are entering a third month of protests after 22-year-old Mahsa Jina Amini died in police custody in September. Since then, foreign-based rights groups say hundreds have been killed by security forces and thousands arrested. In this episode, we look at the role athletes are playing in Iran’s protests.

In this episode: 

• Reza H. Akbari (@rezahakbari), PhD candidate and program manager at Institute for War and Peace Reporting

Episode credits:

This episode was produced by Negin Owliaei with Chloe K. Li and our host, Halla Mohieddeen. Our production team includes Chloe K. Li, Alexandra Locke, Ashish Malhotra, Negin Owliaei, Amy Walters, and Ruby Zaman.  Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our engagement producers are Aya Elmileik and Adam Abou-Gad. Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera’s head of audio.

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