Iran wants to give Ronaldo unlimited Internet access

Iran plans to provide Saudi Al-Nasr striker Cristiano Ronaldo and other foreign football players with a SIM card that will allow them access to the Internet without restrictions, which is not available to citizens of the country, Al Jazeera reports.

Next week, Al-Nasr will play away against Iranian Persepolis in a group stage match of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League. Persepolis president Reza Darwish said some people “who want to tarnish our reputation” are advising footballers not to come to Iran because they will not have access to the Internet without content filtering.

— I spoke with the general director [оператора мобильной связи] and told him that we want to provide players and staff with SIM cards with unlimited Internet access so that they can use it from the moment they enter Iran until the moment they leave,” Darwish said.

Tens of thousands of websites and all major global messaging and social media platforms are blocked in Iran. Restrictions were tightened significantly last year after mass protests.

Iran’s Minister of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts Ezzatollah Zarghami joked that if Ronaldo came to Iran, he would need to use government-approved platforms.

“He can contact his wife, children, friends and ask them all to install these platforms. He should feel happy if he can do it too! – he told reporters with a smile.

Some social network users expressed dissatisfaction with the intention to provide the 38-year-old Portuguese with unlimited access to the World Wide Web.

“I don’t want Ronaldo or any other star to come to Iran if they receive more services than a citizen of the country.” This is a demeaning of every Iranian. “I would like you to understand that Ronaldo does not deserve more rights and services than the Iranians in his homeland,” wrote journalist Ehsan Bodaghi.