The players sought protection after Iran’s team was eliminated from the Women’s Asian Cup in Australia.
Their case drew international attention after members of the squad stood silent during Iran’s national anthem before a March 2 match against South Korea, a gesture widely seen as a protest.
The match took place on the fourth day of US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran.
Some spectators joined the protest, and photographs from the stadium showed fans holding Iranian flags used before the 1979 Islamic Revolution, bearing a lion and sun instead of the emblem of the Islamic Republic.
The players’ silence was sharply criticized in Iran. State television reportedly described them as traitors, and hardline voices in the country condemned the gesture.
On Sunday, the Iran team crashed out of the tournament after losing all three of its matches.
After the team’s final game, five players left the hotel where the squad had been staying.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Tuesday that they had been granted visas allowing them to remain in the country.
He said Australians had been moved by the fate of the players, adding that they were now safe and should feel at home. He said the Australian Federal Police had taken them to a secure location when it became clear they needed help.
US President Donald Trump had appealed publicly to Albanese to offer the players asylum, and said the United States was ready to take them in if Australia did not.
Iranian authorities tried to calm fears on Tuesday, saying the women’s team could return home safely despite the controversy.
The issue drew even more attention because the players’ behavior changed later in the tournament.
While several players remained silent during the anthem before the first match, prior to Thursday's game against host nation Australia, they sang it and some also saluted.
The case has become part of a wider pattern in which Iranian athletes, especially women, face intense scrutiny over public gestures seen as political.
(rt/gs)
Source: PAP