Rashid Mazaheri

Rashid Mazaheri is a former goalkeeper of Iran’s national team and clubs including Esteghlal, Tractor, Sepahan, and Zob Ahan.

He was arrested in March 2026 after publishing critical posts about the crackdown on the December 2025 protests and directly criticizing Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic.

This was not Mazaheri’s first public criticism of the Islamic Republic. In May 2019, he was summoned and suspended by the Football Federation’s Ethics Committee after criticizing the use of Iranian public resources to build football stadiums in Iraq.

A year later, on July 15, 2020, following reports of the planned execution of Amirhossein Moradi, Mohammad Rajabi, and Saeed Tamjidi, three protesters from the November 2019 uprising, Mazaheri posted an Instagram story with the hashtags "Don’t Execute" and "Cursed Land," writing: "You will run out of rope; we are many."

That post led to his summons by IRGC Intelligence and the arrest of the then-Tractor goalkeeper. His later transfer to Esteghlal was also reportedly obstructed by security bodies.

On July 21, 2021, in response to the crackdown on protests in Khuzestan over water shortages, Mazaheri shared a video of security forces shooting at protesters and wrote, in reference to a famous lament about Mohammad Jahanara: "Mammad, you are not here to see that your blood has been wasted."

This post also led to disciplinary action by the Football Federation’s Ethics Committee.

Reports indicate that after his March 2026 arrest, Mazaheri was transferred to Urmia Prison.