Iranian club, Persepolis FC, plans to give a special cell phone sim card to Cristiano Ronaldo when Al Nassr visits Tehran in the Asian Champions League next week.
Ronaldo and Al Nassr are scheduled to travel to Iran to face Persepolis FC in the inaugural Group E match of the Asian Champions League at Azadi Stadium, Tuesday (19/9).
The President of Persepolis FC, Reza Darvish, said that his party does not want the public to view Iran negatively due to internet restrictions. Because of this, Darvish lobbied local telecommunications companies to provide special access for Ronaldo and his teammates.
“I have spoken with the CEO of Irancell, and I told them to give Irancell SIMs with unlimited internet access to the players and officials of the [Al Nassr] team. They can use it when they arrive in Iran until they leave,” said Reza, quoted from Al Jazeera .
Iran is one of the countries that implements strict censorship for internet activities. Social media such as Facebook, TikTok and Twitter are sites that are blocked from being accessed. Apart from that, many news portals have also been blocked by the government.
The blocking of internet sites has become stricter following the massive demonstrations following the death of Mahsa Amini. WhatsApp and Instagram are also two media that are prohibited by the government.
After facing Persepolis, Al Nassr is scheduled to meet Qatari giants Al Duhail and Tajik club Istiklol.
Ronaldo could possibly meet Philippe Coutinho, who has just joined Al Duhail as a loan player from Aston Villa.
Source : CNN
