So this was interesting.

After the USA beat Iran in the World Cup, a ton of people over there were celebrating. Yes, you heard correctly. They were celebrating their country’s loss because apparently they feel like it was a blow to the authoritarian regime running the country.

Check out some of the clips:

That’s pretty wild. I never considered this, but it makes a ton of sense. A loss for Iran is a loss for the oppressive regime.

Their national team players have been under a ton of pressure, and if you noticed during the game they barely mouthed the words of the Iranian anthem. Imagine being in that position. You wanna speak out against the bullshit going on in your country, but if you do, they threaten you and your family with God knows what.

Here’s a good summation via a Newsweek article written by Andrew Stanton:

Columnist Bobby Ghosh said during an appearance on MSNBC that the videos are indicative of growing frustration with Iran’s political leaders, which has long faced scrutiny for its restrictive laws and human rights abuses, specifically against women and the LGBTQ community.

“Remarkably, already I’m seeing reports out of Iran that Iranians are celebrating the American victory,” he said. “That is something I would not in a million years have expected to see in my own lifetime, which tells you that they hate their regime. And they hate the team that represents that regime.”

Amazing, but again, a shit situation for those players. The United States wants to see you lose. Your own people want to see you lose. The regime is up your ass and they have minders watching your every move in Qatar. These guys deserve better and it’s probably for the best that this tournament is over for them and they can go back to their club teams, at least the players based in Europe and not in Iran.