Iran's World Cup campaign began in Los Angeles in a blaze of goals and controversy Monday, with hundreds protesting against a team they see as stooges for an extremist government in Tehran.A boisterous protest greeted fans arriving at SoFi stadium in Los Angeles, with demonstrators waving the pre-revolutionary flag detested by the leaders of the Islamic republic."This team is not the Iranian people's team, it's the regime's team," said Ava Amin, a philosophy student who came to demonstrate with a banner calling for "regime change."

When Iran takes to the field on Monday for the first game of its World Cup, Sara Barahman will be among the thousands of protesters outside the stadium waving a very specific…

Iran’s players have threatened to halt play if protest flags appear inside.

Iranian Americans are torn over Iran’s participation in this year’s World Cup