Mohun Bagan Football Team of India Refuses to Travel to Iran Following Missile Attacks by the Islamic Republic on Israel

The Mohun Bagan football team, representing India in the AFC Champions League, has refrained from traveling to Tabriz to play against Tractor due to 'insecurity' and concerns over escalating military tensions between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Israel. Following the death of Hassan Nasrallah, the Secretary-General of Hezbollah, and the increase in tensions between the Islamic Republic and Israel, 35 players from Mohun Bagan, including foreign players and members of the second team, requested the club management to cancel the trip to Iran in a letter. According to Indian media, the reason for the players' withdrawal was concerns over 'flight safety' in the event of a potential military conflict between Iran and Israel. The Telegraph India reported that the club sent a letter to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), referencing the five days of public mourning in Iran and the possibility of military conflict, requesting a postponement of the match or its relocation to a neutral country. Mohun Bagan, the champion of last season's Indian Super League, is grouped with Tractor Tabriz, Al-Wakrah of Qatar, and FC Istiklol of Tajikistan in Group A of the AFC Champions League. According to the schedule, the team was supposed to face Tractor in Tabriz on Tuesday, October 1, and a representative from the Indian club was expected to attend the pre-match press conference and coordination meeting, but the coordination meeting was held without the presence of this team’s representatives. The Indian club argued that a military conflict between the Islamic Republic and Israel is likely, prompting their request to cancel the match. This decision comes despite the fact that after the Islamic Republic's missile attack on Israel, Iranian airspace remains open for passenger flights, and many social media users have characterized this decision by the Islamic Republic as using passenger flights as a 'human shield.' The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps shot down Ukrainian passenger flight 752 after the killing of Qassem Soleimani in January 2020, resulting in the deaths of 176 passengers. This background and similar insecurities in the region have influenced Mohun Bagan's decision to not travel to Iran. In response to this action, Mehdi Taj, the President of the Iranian Football Federation and Vice-President of the Asian Football Confederation, described the withdrawal as 'unprofessional' and stated, 'Teams like Pakhtakor and Esteghlal from Uzbekistan, who are opponents of Persepolis and Sepahan, have traveled to Iran, and even the match observers for Tractor are present in Tabriz. Why hasn’t the Indian representative come to Iran?' Some Indian media have also reported that while European airlines like Lufthansa have canceled their flights to Iran and government forces at airports are calling for retaliation due to the killings of Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut, how does Iran expect members of this Indian club to travel to Iran with peace of mind? The AFC announced with a one-day delay on the morning of Tuesday that it was aware of the Indian team's absence in Iran and the reasons for the cancellation and has referred the matter to the relevant committee. Under normal circumstances, if a team does not show up for an official match, it faces a 3-0 loss and a monetary penalty according to FIFA regulations. However, it seems that the AFC is handling this matter with more caution, and a final decision regarding this match has not yet been made. It is still unclear whether the match between Tractor and Mohun Bagan will be postponed or if disciplinary penalties will be imposed on the Indian football representative.