ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The goalkeeper of Iran’s national football team made the journey from a nomadic Kurdish family in the Zagros mountains to the brink of a continental championship after the team advanced to the semi-finals of the AFC Asian Cup by toppling favorites Japan.
The Iranian national team played Japan on Saturday in the quarterfinals of the Asian Cup. Alireza Beiranvand was the guardian of the net in the thrilling 2-1 victory over the Samurais.
“I am very happy. It was a difficult match. Japan has a strong team, as you know they are the first pick of the majority of experts and journalists to win the cup,” Beiranvand told Rudaw.
“We hope to go further in the tournament in a similar fashion and become champions,” he added.
The Kurdish goalkeeper is a backbone of the Iranian team. He has one clean sheet in his name in the competition and saved a penalty in the round 16 match against Syria, helping the team advance.
Beiranvand, 31, was born in Sarabias, Lorestan province to a nomadic Kurdish family from the Lak tribe. He never shied away from sharing his Kurdish identity in television interviews and there are videos of him joining in traditional Kurdish dance.
His name first rose to fame on the global stage after blocking a penalty shot by legendary football player Cristiano Ronaldo in the 2018 FIFA World Cup, forcing a draw on Portugal.
Beiranvand went through a difficult journey to make it on the international stage. He told The Guardian in 2018 that his father, Mortaza Beiranvand, used to discourage him from playing by tearing his gloves and kit. But his passion for the beautiful game led him to run away from home for Tehran, chasing a dream.
He was homeless in Tehran and worked in a dressmaking factory, a carwash, and as a street cleaner before signing with Naft-e-Tehran in 2011 where he made his professional football debut. He moved to Persepolis FC, one of Iran’s most popular teams, in 2016.
From an early age, Beiranvand enjoyed a local game called dal paran, which involves throwing stones long distances. The game honed his ability to throw a ball astonishingly far and with great precision. On November 21, 2014, while playing for Naft-e-Tehran, Beiranvand threw the ball nearly 70 yards down the pitch, allowing his side’s strikers to score the winning goal.
In November 2021, Beiranvand’s name was inked in the Guinness World Records as the “farthest distance throw of a football in a competitive match" for a 61-meter throw during a 2016 match against South Korea in Iran’s world-famous Azadi stadium.
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