ACL2: Mohun Bagan move CAS after deciding against Iran trip
Times of India | 28 September 2025"Mohun Bagan Super Giant prioritizes the safety and well-being of its players, officials and support staff. Our players and their families have expressed concern over travel to Iran. The club after due consideration is thoughtful of their request for safety," the club said in a statement on Saturday.
"After careful consideration of the government advisories and the potential uncovered risks involved, and upholding the players' sentiments, the club has approached the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to seek a fair resolution and safeguard its interests," the club further noted.
Jose Molina's team was scheduled to fly to Iran in the wee hours of Sunday. However, just like the previous season, they again highlighted player security to decide against travelling to the west Asian country. Interestingly, Bagan's statement came hours after the Indian Football Association confirmed on Saturday that the team would take part in the IFA Shield, likely to start early next month.
Last year, when Bagan didn't travel to Iran to face Tractor SC in Tabriz citing player security amid political tension and conflict in the region, the AFC deemed the city team "withdrawn" from the continental competition.
That match was supposed to be held on Oct 2, the day after Iran launched missiles towards Israel.
Mohun Bagan's failure to turn up for another match in Iran at a time when political unrest in the Gulf nation is not as pronounced as last year, means the ISL champions may face more stringent sanctions. The city club's move to Lausanne-based sports disputes-settling court should be seen from this perspective.
It has been learnt that e-visas have been issued to all Bagan players this time around, but the management has been again in a limbo over travel advisories cautioning Australian and British players to travel to Iran.
Bagan have an Australian attacking trio in Dimitri Petratos, Jason Cummings and Jamie Maclaren while defender Tom Aldred is from Scotland. It has been learnt that Bagan's all six foreigners, including Spanish defender Alberto Rodriguez and Brazilian attacker Robson Robinho, have informed the club that they are unwilling to make the trip to Iran.
In 2012, East Bengal arrived in Iran to take on Erbil FC in their AFC Cup match without head coach Trevor Morgan and leading striker Tolgay Ozbey, both Australian passport-holders.
The team's other foreigners were part of the team.
As recently as in the AFC Champions League 2023-24, Mumbai City faced Iranian team Nassaji Mazandaran in Tehran City with an all-Indian line-up.
Bagan, who refused to release their domestic players for the CAFA Nations Cup after highlighting the need of their presence for the ACL2 preparation, began their campaign in the continental tournament with a 0-1 defeat to Turkmenistan's Ahal FK at the Salt lake Stadium on Sept 16.
