Media from non-Persian regions consider the slogan "Pride of Persia" to be divisive and racist.
The media from Iran's non-Persian regions regard the slogan "Pride of Persia" selected for the Iranian national football team as a slogan that divides the people, creates discord, and is racist.
According to the website of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), among three proposed slogans for the Iranian national football team for the upcoming 2014 World Cup in Brazil, "Pride of Persia" was chosen.
The other proposed slogans for the Iranian team were "One World, One Nation, One Team" and "Seize the Dream!"
The Durna News website, based in Iran's West Azerbaijan province, emphasized that such slogans would cause division among the various ethnic groups living in Iran.
"In the past, the slogan 'Persian Stars' was chosen for the national team. However, after President Rouhani's promises to protect the rights of various ethnicities, we hoped we would not encounter such issues," Durna News wrote.
The Iranian football team's 2006 World Cup slogan was "Persian Stars," and in the 2011 Asia Cup, it was "Persian Princes."
According to Iranian news agencies, FIFA website users participate in a poll on the site to choose one of the proposed slogans for their national teams. The Iranian media did not provide information about who or which body proposed the slogans.
The Günaz TV website, which includes members of several ethnic communities, including Turkish and Arab football players, deemed the name "Pride of Persia" for a team composed of these players to be racist.
Human rights groups and Azerbaijani websites note that racism is rooted not only in the government bodies in Iran but also within society itself.
Link to the original text in Turkish on the Azerbaijani section of Voice of America:
İran futbol komandasının şüarı: Farsın İftixarı