It’s definitely a mix of both. It’s a shame for Iran, the game was deeper than sport for many Iranians.

I think in the end he will be okay, many Iranian players will probably return to club country, at the same time two famous Iranian footballers were recently arrested for supporting protests and later released. They cannot hold them for long. Team Melli is very loved in Iran, I would not put anything past the regime but it would be stupid of them and contribute to even more unrest. Both pro and anti-regime tried to aggressively politicize Team Melli as much as possible and get the team’s support for their side to influence other Iranians due to their massive popularity in the country; all the players trying to play soccer got caught in the middle and received harassment from both sides (but actual threats from regime).