FIFA has been urged by campaigners to consider excluding Iran from the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.More than 25,000 people have signed a petition on change.org asking for Iran to be banned from the tournament, a month after human rights group Open Stadiums made the same request.Meanwhile, Iranian journalist and women’s rights activist Masih Alinejad has sent a formal letter to FIFA in collaboration with Spanish law firm Ruiz-Huerta & Crespo.With Iran set to meet England, Wales and the United States in Group B next month, the country’s exclusion from the World Cup would cause shockwaves through the world of football.But why is FIFA being urged to kick out Iran? GiveMeSport Women takes a deeper look at the situation.

Why has FIFA been asked to exclude Iran from the 2022 World Cup?

The calls to kick Iran out of the 2022 World Cup have increased as widespread anti-government protests, led by women, have spread across the country.

The protests were sparked by the death of the 22-year-old Masha Amini, who was arrested by morality police for allegedly wearing her headscarf too loosely.

She died in custody last month after falling into a coma, with reports claiming she had suffered a cerebral haemorrhage and stroke after the police had brutally beaten her.

Both Alinejad and Open Stadiums have claimed the treatment of women in Iran should lead to the country’s exclusion from the World Cup, particularly the regulations which prevent women from watching football matches.

“Iran's brutality and belligerence towards its own people have reached a tipping point that calls for an unequivocal and firm disassociation from the world of football and sport,” Alinejad said in her letter to FIFA.

“FIFA's historical abstention from political conflicts has only been tolerated when these situations do not metastasize in the football sphere.

“Football, which should be a safe place for everyone, is not a safe space for women, not even for men.

“Women have been systematically denied access to stadiums across the country and systematically excluded from the football ecosystem in Iran, which is in contrast to FIFA's values.”

Iranian women at football match

TEHRAN, IRAN - OCTOBER 10: Female football fans show their support ahead of the FIFA World Cup Qualifier match between Iran and Cambodia at Azadi Stadium on October 10, 2019 in Tehran, Iran. (Photo by Amin M. Jamali/Getty Images)

Why else has FIFA been asked to exclude Iran from the 2022 World Cup?

There have also been calls for Iran to be excluded from the 2022 World Cup due to reports that the country has been supplying Russia with weapons for the invasion of Ukraine.

Shakhtar Donetsk chief executive Sergei Palkin released a statement yesterday arguing that Iran should be replaced by Ukraine at the tournament.

"While the Iranian leadership will have fun watching their national team play at the World Cup, Ukrainians will be killed by Iranian drones and Iranian missiles," Palkin said.

"Shakhtar Football Club calls on FIFA and the entire international community to immediately ban Iran’s national team from playing at the World Cup for the country’s direct participation in terrorist attacks on Ukrainians."

Iran football player Ali Gholizadeh
DOHA, QATAR - JUNE 12: Ali Gholizadeh of Iran in action during the FIFA Friendly Regular Round match between Iran and Algeria at Suheim Bin Hamad Stadium on June 12, 2022 in Doha, Qatar. (Photo by Naeem Ahmadi ATPImages/Getty Images)

DOHA, QATAR - JUNE 12: Ali Gholizadeh of Iran in action during the FIFA Friendly Regular Round match between Iran and Algeria at Suheim Bin Hamad Stadium on June 12, 2022 in Doha, Qatar. (Photo by Naeem Ahmadi ATPImages/Getty Images)

Palkin continued: "This will be a fair decision that should draw the attention of the whole world to a regime that kills its best people and helps kill Ukrainians.

“The vacant place should be taken by the national team of Ukraine, which proved that it is worthy of participation in the World Cup. With unequal conditions with other national teams during the playoffs, they played with their heart.

"This decision is historically and sportingly justified. I urge everyone to join the pressure on the footballing bureaucracy."

When is the 2022 FIFA World Cup?

The 2022 World Cup is scheduled to run from November 20th to December 18th in eight venues across Qatar.

Iran’s first match of the tournament is set to be against England on November 21st.

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