While the ongoing Israel-Iran conflict impacts both nations across numerous fronts—including sports—their earlier encounters were once confined to football pitches, not battlefields.
The national teams of Israel and Iran faced each other five times in official matches. Each game tells a unique story, reflecting the complex history between two former Asian football powerhouses.
Head-to-Head Matches
1958 Asian Games – Israel 4:0 Iran (Tokyo, Japan)
1960 Asian Cup Qualifiers – Israel 0:3 Iran / Iran 1:1 Israel (Kochi, India)
1968 Asian Cup – Iran 2:1 Israel
1974 Asian Games – Iran 1:0 Israel
1958 Asian Games: The First Encounter
The first official meeting between the two nations took place at the 1958 Asian Games in Tokyo. Drawn into the same group, the tournament began with a commanding 4–0 win for Israel.
Nahum Stelmach scored a brace, with Yehoshua Glazer and Noah Reznik also finding the net. The result proved decisive: Israel advanced to the quarterfinals, while Iran was eliminated in the group stage. However, Israel fell to the Republic of China (Taiwan) in the next round and did not medal.
This remains Israel's only victory over Iran in football history.
1960 Asian Cup Qualifiers: A Bizarre Series
The 1960 Asian Cup qualifiers featured a strange turn of events. Israel, Iran, India, and Pakistan were grouped together in the Western Zone, with all matches held in Kochi, India. Due to severe weather, games were shortened to 80 minutes.
Iran opened with a 3–0 victory over Israel, with goals from Hameed Barmaki, Abbas Hojari, and Parviz Dehdari. However, the competition remained wide open. Israel bounced back with wins over India and Pakistan, while Iran lost to both. In their second meeting, Iran and Israel drew 1–1—Avraham Menchel scored for Israel, with Hojari equalizing.
Israel ultimately topped the group and qualified for the Asian Cup, where they finished runners-up to South Korea.
1968 Asian Cup: Iran’s Rise Begins
For the first time, Israel played in Tehran, defending their Asian championship title. Iran, hosting the tournament, was making its Asian Cup debut and was considered a strong contender.
Both teams started with wins over Hong Kong. Israel’s subsequent 1–0 loss to Burma forced them to chase Iran in the standings.
On May 19, 1968, the decisive match was held at Amjadieh Stadium. Giora Spiegel gave Israel the lead in the 53rd minute, but Iran equalized through Homayoun Behzadi in the 75th. Parviz Ghelichkhani's late winner sealed a 2–1 win for Iran and delivered their first Asian Cup title—the beginning of a three-title streak.
1974 Asian Games: The Final Clash
The final meeting between the two national teams also took place in Tehran, during the 1974 Asian Games. Both sides entered as title favorites, having dominated their respective groups.
In the final, held at Aryamehr Stadium (now Azadi Stadium), the atmosphere was charged and hostile toward the Israeli team. Iran won 1–0 through an own goal by Israeli player Itzhak Shum. The politically fraught environment added significant weight to the result.
That same tournament marked a turning point: both the Olympic Council of Asia and the Asian Football Confederation confirmed Israel’s expulsion from Asian competitions—making this match the last official encounter between the two nations.
Other Notable Encounters
It wasn’t only the national teams that crossed paths—clubs from both countries also clashed on the continental stage.
In the 1970 Asian Club Championship final, Iran’s Taj (now Esteghlal) defeated Hapoel Tel Aviv 2–1 after extra time in Tehran. Masoud Moeini scored the winner in the 92nd minute, earning Iran its first continental club title.
In 1972, Israel won its sixth and final AFC Youth Championship in Bangkok. In the semifinals, they edged Iran 1–0, courtesy of an early goal by Vicky Peretz.
Legacy of a Rivalry Interrupted
Though geopolitical tensions eventually severed sporting ties between Israel and Iran, their football rivalry remains one of the most compelling chapters in Asian football history. Each encounter symbolized not only athletic competition but also the broader political and cultural currents that continue to shape the region.
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