Four of Iran's national football players have been forced to "retire" following their World Cup qualifier against South Korea in which some team members sported green armbands in solidarity with the Iranian opposition against the re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a known football buff.
The players have been slapped with a life ban, meaning they will not able to play for their country again, and have also had their passports taken away from them, threatening their jobs abroad with European teams.
Source: Alarabiya.net (Dubai-based, Saudi-owned), June 24, 2009
