DPA - Iranian President
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told Iran's footballers Saturday he would make every
effort to visit them if they reach the second round of the World Cup in
Germany, sources close to the squad told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.
The players told the president they hoped he would make good on his
promise and presented him with a national team jersey with the number 24
and his name on it, the sources said.
Iran, who play in Group D against Mexico in Nuremberg, Portugal in
Frankfurt and Angola in Leipzig, need to fill one of the top two places
to qualify for the second round.
During a farewell ceremony at the German ambassador's residence in
Tehran, the players said the political controversy surrounding their
country would not affect the team's performance.
The news agency ISNA quoted the head of the Iranian Football Federation
(FFI) as confirming the probable visit of the president in case the
Iranian reached the next round.
'The president is interested to see the games live in Germany if the
team reaches the second round and Inshallah (God willing) we will both
reach the second round and witness the presence of our president in the
games (in Germany),' Mohammad Dadkan said.
'We are not after political issues in Germany and just want to transfer
our message of peace and friendship to the world,' he said while adding
that all necessary steps have been taken by both Iran and Germany to
avoid any political tensions.
The FFI president had said earlier Saturday that the president might
visit Germany for the World Cup.
'We met the president on Thursday and extended an official FFI
invitation to him to join the team in Germany,' Dadkan told reporters
prior to the team's departure for Germany.
'The president said that he would come if he could finish arranging the
affairs of state and had some spare time,' Dadkan added.
Ahmadinejad has been roundly condemned by Germany and other western
countries for denying the Holocaust and Israel's right to exist.
The Iranian squad is due to arrive in Germany on Sunday and take up
residence in the southern city of Friedrichshafen.
Neo-Nazi groups in Germany have threatened to hold rallies in support of
the Iran president's policies during the World Cup.
