Masoud Shojaei Criticizes Financial and Moral Corruption in Football and Society

Masoud Shojaei, a player of the Iranian national football team, states that despite being fully focused on professional football, he has never been indifferent to social issues in Iran. Child labor exploitation, financial and ethical violations in football, mistreatment of migrants, and corruption in the media are topics that Shojaei has openly discussed. This creative midfielder has been playing continuously outside Iran for over a decade. Previously, only Mehdi Mahdavikia and Vahid Hashemian managed to play uninterrupted for more than a decade outside Iran. In a recent match in Athens between Panionios and Panathinaikos, he assisted his team’s goal to Karim Ansarifard and answered questions afterward. He mentioned that if he remains silent about the prevalent corruption in society, he would betray future generations, which is why he believes it is appropriate to speak out. Shojaei learned the basics of football at the age of 15 in the Oil Industry Club of Abadan, then joined the youth team of Saipa. This cycle repeated in the adult category, first playing for the Oil Industry and then for Saipa, from which he became prominent and donned the national team jersey. He is the only player in the history of Iranian football to have played in two World Cups without having been a member of the Persepolis and Esteghlal clubs. If Masoud and Andranik participate in the next World Cup, they will set a historical record for three World Cup appearances. In this interview, Shojaei criticized the ban on women entering stadiums. He also spoke about widespread media corruption and extortion in sports. He stated that stars like Vahid Hashemian are overlooked despite their brilliant records because they do not pay bribes and do not conform to the corrupt atmosphere that has engulfed Iranian football. Shojaei emphasized that if he continues to raise these issues alone, he too will be sidelined because the 'corrupt system' eliminates critics. His first national game was against Laos in the 2006 World Cup qualifiers. Shojaei, who has also captained the national team, has scored twice against South Korea on their soil. His first national goal was against Saudi Arabia at Azadi Stadium. Regarding the Iranian Parliament's follow-up on football corruption, he stated that these cases do not reach conclusions because those who need to be exposed are powerful individuals, and there are many of them. He also mentioned the mistreatment of migrants and the obstacles they face in securing basic living necessities. He himself is active in the deprived area of Ne'matabad police station in southern Tehran, but the municipality has not yet provided assistance for the housing and education of the teenagers he is concerned about. In the UAE league, he has an impressive record of 12 goals in 40 matches. He moved from the UAE to Spain in 2008. Even a long injury did not cause Masoud to return from Spain to the Iranian league. Playing for Osasuna in La Liga and Las Palmas in Segunda División, scoring against Atlético Madrid and shining against Real Madrid are among Shojaei's memorable matches in Spain. He played his first La Liga match against Villarreal and subsequently played another hundred matches for Osasuna. After leaving this team, he also played for Las Palmas. While he had reached an agreement to join Real Zaragoza, and the club announced this news, the offer from Al-Shahania was five times that of the Spanish team. Therefore, he played two seasons for this Qatari team and then for Al-Gharafa. This skillful midfielder also has a good scoring instinct and continues to score and assist in the Greek Super League for Panionios. In the same context, several local sports managers in Iran have been arrested on charges of 'financial corruption'. A parliamentary report on corruption in football states that 18 individuals are being referred to the judiciary. The Article 90 Commission has confirmed the violations of the Football Federation. There are ambiguities regarding the detainees from the Ministry of Sports. The Iranian Parliament is pursuing 'corruption in football schools'. The Ministry of Intelligence has entered the corruption case in football refereeing.