Mohun Bagan Super Giant has faced a ban on their participation in Asian Football Confederation competitions. This latest decision follows their refusal to play in Iran for an originally-scheduled game. The ban continues until the 2027-28 season, leaving the club effectively barred from competing in the next edition of the Asian competition. This decision comes as a result of the club’s fears regarding security and medical insurance policies while present in Iran.
In September, Mohun Bagan took the unprecedented step of forfeiting their Asian Champions League Two tie against Sepahan SC. They listed weak security guarantees as the reason for not attending. In response to the scenes, the club chose to pull out of the fixture entirely. In turn, they endured heavy fiscal penalties, such as a $50,000 fine levied against the AFC. The club owes $50,729 in damages. This figure includes damages suffered by museum AFC and Sepahan SC.
The players decided they can’t take this risk, where lives and their families’ future are at stake. So we have to stand with them. – a senior Mohun Bagan official
AFC made a strong statement by making Mohun Bagan’s all matches as abandoned. They had lost out on any subsidies related to the club’s deep run into that continental second-tier tournament. Your next domestic league match is at home to Tractor SC on 2 October 2024. This game takes place against the backdrop of increased tensions in the region following recent ballistic missile launches from Iran targeting Israel.
Countries of origin for five Mohun Bagan players—Australia, Spain, and the United Kingdom—are quite in favor of the decision to deny travel. Their support gives significant credence to the team’s argument. To make the landing club’s challenge even tougher, these countries have now all formally warned their citizens to refrain from traveling to Iran.
Following these developments, Mohun Bagan has confirmed it will appeal against the suspension. They are facing an uphill battle. They’re all the while attempting to manage blowback from their demand that they not play, with security concerns spiking.
