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By AUSTRALIAN ASSOCIATED PRESS Published: 21: 29 AEDT, 5 March 2026 | Updated: 23: 33 AEDT, 5 March 2026 5 View comments Iran's players sang and saluted their national anthem prior to their Women's Asian Cup clash with Australia after anti-regime protesters called the players hostages of the current autocracy. The players made global headlines when they did not sing or salute the anthem in the lead-up to Monday night's 3-0 loss to South Korea. Dissident Iranians booed during the anthem of the Islamic regime as the players reversed their previous actions with a military salute at the Gold Coast on Thursday. Rain poured down at the Cbus Super Stadium as the players lined up for the customary pre-match ritual. In what was a heartwarming moment, Iran forward Shabnam Behesht appeared to shield the mascot who was standing in front of her from the rain, by holding her hands over the youngster's head. Mary Fowler marked her first start for Australia in nearly a year with a goal as the Matildas surged to a 4-0 victory. Australian-based protesters against the Iranian regime have said the country was using the women's football team to normalise their alleged crimes. In the hours before Iran's Women's Asian Cup clash with Australia, about 50 Iranian Australians chanted 'thank you Bibi, thank you Trump', in reference to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump authorising the bombing of Iran, which has killed Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iran's women's footballers appeared to salute and sing their country's national anthem on Thursday night ahead of their clash against Australia Some fans were seen displaying posters which spelled out 'Trump' inside the stadium. 'I think the players are hostages of the Islamic regime who are trying to normalise the crimes they have committed on Iranian people, ' Azin Naghibi told AAP. 'Give them (the players) one second of a chance and they would get rid of that mandatory hijab first thing. If they had free speech and weren't being controlled, I am sure most of them would join us and be aligned with the 90 million other Iranians. 'We are here to support their emotions because they are under pressure and we are their voices in the Iranian diaspora. ' ABC presenter Tracey Holmes wrote on X: 'Just like the men’s team at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar, the women’s team from Iran are singing the national anthem ‘under instruction’ for game two, after refusing to sing in game one; not just singing, but saluting. ' Sources close to SBS have claimed that the Iranian side have been under very strict surveillance during the tournament and were 'monitored the whole time'. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has slammed the war against Iran as illegal, while French President Emmanuel Macron said the US-Israeli strikes on Iran that killed Iran's supreme leader were conducted 'outside of international law'. Naghibi said that the actions of Trump and Netanyahu were necessary. In what was a heartwarming moment, Iran forward Shabnam Behesht appeared to shiled the mascot who was stood in front of her from the rain, by holding her hands over the youngster's head It came as the rain poured down at the Cbus Super Stadium ahead of Iran's clash against the Matildas Some fans inside the stadium held up a sign which spelled 'Trump' ahead of the match She said she was 'a freedom fighter' who had been in Australia for over 12 years after fleeing Iran for her own safety. She protested against the regime and was in the streets when there was bloodshed after the protesters were harmed . 'Iranians cannot get rid of this brutal regime. It would cost more innocent lives to be killed, ' she said. 'With their bare hands it would take many years to get rid of this regime and cost many more lives. We needed this intervention. ' Hesam Orouji also said the women's football team were being held like hostages and said the US and Israeli bombing was justified. 'Ayatollah Khamenei is our Adolf Hitler so we are happy and we think this time we can be free in Iran, ' said Hesam Orouji. 'They occupied my country for 47 years and they killed thousands of Iranians. 'They spent all their national wealth just to support terrorism but now we're almost there - a free Iran, that is going to change the world. ' There were fears Manchester City star Fowler would miss this year's tournament on home soil when she suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury last April. But after making a rapid return, Fowler showed she has lost no sharpness to grab a goal as Australia raced out to a 3-0 halftime lead on the Gold Coast on Thursday. Mary Fowler marked her first start for Australia in nearly a year with a goal as the Matildas surged to a 4-0 victory Alanna Kennedy, who grabbed a brace, added to the Matildas' goal tally after the break, in front of a crowd of 22, 398 Alanna Kennedy, who grabbed a brace, added to the Matildas' goal tally after the break, in front of a crowd of 22, 398. The only downside to the night for the Matildas was that Hayley Raso failed to finish the match due to a suspected concussion. The result keeps Australia in second place in Group A, behind South Korea by just one goal's difference. Those two sides meet in Sydney on Sunday to determine who will top the group and the Koreans look set to provide a much sterner test of the Matildas' credentials than Iran.
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