Ghafouri, who is also the captain of the Persian Gulf Pro League club, Foolad wasn’t picked for the FIFA World Cup 2022. For a long time, Ghafouri had been quite vocal against the Iranian authorities, objecting to their longstanding ban on women fans at men’s football games, as well as on Iran’s confrontational foreign policy that has led to Western sanctions. Even recently only, the right-back showed sympathy for a family of a 22-year-old woman, who died while being in the custody of Iran’s morality police – something that ignited the latest protests in the country. Other than these, Ghafouri also raised his voice to end the violent protests in Iran's western Kurdistan region.
