“Esteghlal or Persepolis?” and “blue or red?” are two questions tens of millions of Iranians have asked and answered over the years to determine which side they stand behind in a seemingly perennial rivalry between Iran’s two most popular soccer clubs. Now, the two may be sold to the private sector, as approved on Dec. 16 by a Cabinet meeting presided by President Hassan Rouhani. The decision signals a high-level political will to pave the way toward realizing the almost two-decade goal of freeing the two clubs from government control. However, many hurdles and uncertainties persist.
For one, transparency in disclosing the accounts and financial balances of the clubs is a major issue. The significant volumes of debt racked up by the clubs have become subject of much scrutiny.
