Sweden-born midfielder Saman Ghoddos has been called up for the first time by Iran coach Carlos Queiroz, but there is no place in the squad for veteran Masoud Shojaei.

Shojaei fell foul of Iranian authorities earlier this month when he played for his club side Panionios in the Europa League against Israel's Maccabi Tel Aviv.

Iranian sportsmen are not permitted to compete against Israelis, with Iran not recognising Israel's right to exist. Reports previously suggested both Shojaei and Ehsan Hajsafi,...

Manchester United legend Park Ji-Sung has called upon South Korea fans to get behind their team against a "European" Iran in a vital 2018 AFC World Cup qualifier in Seoul on Aug. 31.

Coach Shin Tae-Yong called up English Premier League stars Son Heung-Min and Ki Sung-Yeung in his first squad on Monday. Games in the K-League have been cancelled on the weekend of Aug. 27 and 28 to give Shin more time with his players.

While Iran have already booked their spot in next year's tournament as they sit...

Iran has barred two players from national team duty for life after they faced an Israeli club in the Europa League, a government official said on Thursday.

Iran captain Masoud Shojaei and midfielder Ehsan Haji Safi each played 90 minutes in Greek club Panionios' home leg of the third-round qualifier against Maccabi Tel Aviv last week, after sitting out the first leg in Israel.

That violated Iran's longstanding prohibition on athletes facing opponents from Israel, a nation that is not recognized by...