While Al-Ittihad Saudi Club was preparing to play against Sepahan Iranian Club in Isfahan during the AFC Champions League, the players of Al-Ittihad refused to participate in the match, which was supposed to start at 7 PM Saudi time on Monday. They conducted training in the changing room in protest against the presence of a statue at the entrance of the stadium of the former commander of the Quds Force, Qassem Soleimani, in addition to political slogans.
The Saudi club requested that the match referees and observer remove the pictures and statues from the players' entryway in order to organize the match under normal sporting conditions. When the match observer and referees asked the Iranian officials to remove the statues and banners and received a refusal, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) observer announced that he had documented all the Iranian violations that led to the cancellation of the match and that they would be presented to the disciplinary committee for necessary actions.
This step was met with significant support from the Saudi public, who praised the club's stance and called on the AFC to take necessary measures against the politicization of football and the use of stadiums to convey political messages.
In a statement issued by the AFC, they affirmed their commitment to ensuring the safety and security of players, match officials, fans, and all stakeholders involved, and stated that this matter would be referred to the relevant committees.
Meanwhile, Sepahan Iranian fans chanted slogans calling for the politics to be removed from sports and for the signs and statues to be taken down from the match venue. Tens of thousands of Sepahan fans chanted political slogans following the cancellation of the match with Al-Ittihad due to pictures and statues of Qassem Soleimani, including chants of "We do not want politicized football."
