Iran's parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said the women's national football team and coaching staff would return home "with pride," dismissing what he described as enemy attempts to turn the players against their country, in a post on X on March 18.

The statement comes as the squad travels back to Iran via Oman after five of seven players who had initially sought asylum in Australia reversed their decisions and rejoined the team in Malaysia.

"The daughters of this land refused to give in to the intimidation and seduction of Iran's enemies," Ghalibaf wrote.

The team's journey home has been complicated by the war, with direct flights to Tehran unavailable and the squad routing through Kuala Lumpur and Muscat. The Iranian embassy arranged the travel, the Asian Football Confederation said.

The players had been competing in the AFC Women's Asian Cup in Australia when the US-Israeli strikes on Iran began on February 28. Before their opening match against South Korea, the squad refused to sing the national anthem, prompting Iranian state media to label them "traitors."

Australia granted humanitarian visas to six players and one staff member. Five later withdrew their asylum claims, with the Iranian diaspora in Australia and rights groups blaming pressure from Tehran, including reported threats to players' families by the IRGC intelligence unit. Iranian authorities denied the accusations.

Two players, including captain and all-time top scorer Zahra Ghanbari, remain in Australia under government protection at an undisclosed location.