There "seems to be a sporting side effect to the growing tensions between Iran and Saudi Arabia," according to Shimon Cohen of ISRAEL NATIONAL NEWS. Saudi Arabian football teams are "refusing to travel to Iran to participate in a series of games that are scheduled for them as part of the Asian Champions league." A number of Saudi Arabian football teams "have issued statements that they do not wish their players to travel to Iran for the fear that they may be attacked and killed." The clubs have also "issued requests that the games scheduled to take place in Iran be moved to a third party neutral location." Representatives from Saudi Arabian teams said that Saudi players "have already suffered mistreatment when attending games in Iran." Saudi top-flight side Al-Hilal former President Saudi Prince Abed Al-Rahman Bin Mussad tweeted, "We demand that the games against Iranian teams be moved to a neutral country. We do not want to go to them, so that they won't come to us." The Saudi teams "also suggested a reshuffling of the league competitions to create a schedule that would have the Saudi and Iranian teams avoid playing against one another" (ISRAEL NATIONAL NEWS, 1/11).
