Indian champions Mohun Bagan Super Giant have been excluded from the next Asian competition they qualify for and ordered to pay over $100,000 in fines and costs, after refusing to travel to Iran for an AFC Champions League Two match in September.
The Asian Football Confederation’s disciplinary committee handed down the ruling on Wednesday, banning the club from AFC tournaments for which they qualify up to the 2027-28 season. They were also fined $50,000 and must pay a further $50,729 to cover damages and losses incurred by the AFC and opponents Sepahan SC.
The dispute stems from Mohun Bagan’s group stage match against Sepahan, which was scheduled to be played in Iran. The club refused to travel, citing a lack of security assurances and inadequate medical insurance coverage for their squad, which includes five players from Australia, Spain, and the UK countries that have advised against travel to Iran.
“The players decided they can’t take this risk, where lives and their families’ future are at stake. So we have to stand with them,” a senior club official told Reuters.
Mohun Bagan had appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport to have the match moved to a neutral venue, but the request was rejected. As a result, the AFC withdrew them from the competition and declared their matches null and void.
This is not the first time the Kolkata based side has pulled out of an away fixture in Iran. They also did not travel in October 2024 for a match against Tractor SC, scheduled for the day after Iran launched missile strikes toward Israel, and were subsequently withdrawn from that year’s tournament as well.
The hefty punishment leaves a serious stain on Mohun Bagan’s continental ambitions and serves as a stern warning to other clubs over compliance with AFC competition regulations.
