The Brazil women's football team arrived in Australia on Wednesday morning for the women's FIFA World Cup 2023 paying tribute to Iran’s protesters.
The squad travelled on a plane that had “No woman should be forced to cover her head” and “No man should be hanged for saying this” written across it, and also had pictures of Iranians Mahsa Amini and Amir Nasr Azadani on the tail.
Amini died in police custody last year in September, following her arrest for allegedly violating Iran's strict dress code for women, which sparked protests all over the country while Azadani, a former football player, was arrested during the protests and was sentenced to 26 years in prison.
The development comes after FIFA confirmed that no player or the club would be allowed to wear rainbow armbands or anything that represents LGBTQ+ in any way.
Meanwhile, Brazil’s superstar Marta Vieira da Silva, aged 37, announced that this will be her last World Cup.
“We have to understand that a time comes for us to prioritise other things,” she said. “Having the chance of going to another World Cup, my sixth, is surreal to me,” she said.
Brazil are in Group F and will play Panama in their opening game at Hindmarsh Stadium in Adelaide on 24 July.
The World Cup will be co-hosted by New Zealand and Australia, which features 32 teams, and the tournament's final will be played on August 20 in Sydney.
The last Women’s FIFA World Cup in 2019 was won by USA who defeated Netherlands 2-0 in the final to win their second consecutive and fourth overall title.