‘Guilty conscience’: Iranians in London torn over cheering on their team

Saheil Ghaffari, pictured outside the Joiners Pub in Finchley, north London, where the match was shown, said: ‘In the Iranian political atmosphere it is very difficult to have an opinion.’ Photograph: Antonio Olmos/The Guardian

Defeat to England was not necessarily at the forefront of every Iranian supporter’s mind in Finchley when their team was beaten 6-2 in their opening group game at the World Cup on Monday.

Instead, the internal politics of the country thousands of miles away left many in the north London community, which is home to a large Iranian diaspora, torn over the continuing national uprising and government crackdown.