The world of soccer is full of memorable commentary from the game's energetic broadcasters. At times, the announcers' colorful words are what the fans remember long after they forgot the details of a key play or an important victory. Iran’s historic 2018 World Cup win against Morocco was not an exception. The wonderful broadcast of Iran’s beloved soccer commentator Adel Ferdosipour appears to have struck a positive chord within the country.

Moments of collective public celebrations are rare for any nation, but there are especially scarce in Iran. The country has endured almost 40 years of international isolation as well as restrictive social policies that hamper public displays of revelry. Ferdosipour's emphatic shouts of "take in the pleasure" and "enjoy" sound much sweeter within that context. His broadcast was emotional, honest, and more importantly, managed to capture the collective public emotion.

It would be a shame not to have a record of Ferdosipour’s announcement in English, so I translated the last four minutes of the broadcast.

"Ehsan [Hajsafi] sends in the free kick…GOAL! In the net! Did Mehdi Taremi score or was it an own goal? Goal for Iran. Minute 95 their goal opens. How much did we enjoy this! Joonam* (my life) Mr. Bouhaddouz! I think it was an own goal by Aziz Bouhaddouz. The first own goal of the Cup results in our 1-0 victory. 1-0 for Iran. Look at these fans. Take in this pleasure. Enjoy. You see Carlos Queiroz. Minute 95 the result is 1-0. Mehdi Torabi was there. Let’s see Ehsan Hajsafi’s excellent cross. What a good and beautiful own goal! We are watching this together. A diving header. A ball that Aziz Bouhaddouz places in their own goal. Joonam Queiroz! How good is this team? How good are these boys? How much are we enjoying this?

1-0 for Iran. Our second victory in the history of the World Cup. The history of the Iranian soccer will not forget these 90 minutes. Mr. Cakir* should blow the [final] whistle! The ball comes to the left. A cross by Achraf Hakimi. Ya Ali!* And it’s caught! Caught. Rouzbeh [Cheshmi] says it’s over! Ramin [Rezaeian] says it’s over! And it’s over for real! It’s over for real! Congratulations to all of you! What an eidi* (gift) they gave us, these players. What good boys we have! How beautiful and dear are they? How much did we enjoy this? A sweet victory. A memorable victory. Three valuable points. Saint Petersburg becomes eternal for us. This team deserves any type of praise and compliment. The entire world is forced to remember Iran. Beiranvand had a clean sheet like Alireza Haghighi. He is our second goalkeeper to have a [World Cup] clean sheet. An own goal resulted in our victory."

*Iranians typically refer to their loved ones as their "jan" or their life. Also, if used in reaction or reference to a pleasurable moment it can express joy to its utmost degree.

*Turkey's Cüneyt Çakır was the referee of the game.

*Iranians practicing Shia Islam often call on Imam Ali in moments of peril. Ali was the cousin and the son-in-law of Muhammad, the prophet of Islam. He ruled as the fourth caliph from 656 to 661.

*Eidi is a gift that is usually given by elder relatives and family friends as part of the celebration of Muslim holidays. The game coincided with Eid al-Fitr, an important religious holiday that marks the end of Ramadan, the Islamic month of fasting.

Soccer fans everywhere are counting down the days in anticipation of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, a truly international event that happens every four years. The competition starts on June 14 and Iran will not be left behind this year. After a long and arduous road, the country has qualified for its 5th appearance. Many of you will be cheering on Iran’s national team (Team Melli) as they face one of the toughest groups in the World Cup that includes Morocco (June 15th), Spain (June 20th), and Portugal (June 25th). However, the country’s unwavering fans do not seem to be intimidated by the impressive resume of their opponents and count on their team to shock the world.

In a music video, produced by a group of talented Iranian musicians, comedians, and puppeteers, the fans are challenging the likes of Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo and Spain’s Sergio Ramos to an unforgettable match. What makes this video my personal favorite, is a perfect mix of childhood nostalgia, respect for past players, country’s love of soccer, and a comical level of bravado. The music video is further perfected by its inclusion of the Bandari music style—a rhythmic type of dance music played in fast and slow tempos mainly in Southern Iran.

Do not be confused by the purple puppet! That’s Jenab Khan, a puppet character that makes frequent appearances on Iran’s popular nightly comedy show called Khandevane. The puppet is a big football fan and has actually claimed to be the owner of Paris Saint-Germain F.C. I translated the song for the fans who may struggle to understand the lyrics, especially the fast rhythm of the hip-hop portion. The video includes some esoteric local references, which I try to explain at the bottom of the post.

Here's to an incredible World Cup for all, especially for Iran’s Cheetahs!

Where in the world with a two-layered plastic ball*
On a shadow-less asphalt [field]
One person shoeless, one with sandals
Challenge each other to a nutmeg (through the legs) contest?

Where in the world the goalpost is a bucket?
The double cut move is ours, brother! You get it?
The just winner on the asphalt street
[Kicks] all three corners and a penalty
We’ve battled (dribbled) the street soccer groupings
Don’t frighten us of Cris Ronaldo!

Where else in the world have you seen shoot-e yek zarb*?
Have you ever made a cut with a two-layered ball?
He dies after an ACL tear!
Have you ever experienced knee effusion?
They’d broadcast from Channel One
The movie, Victory
But, it was us that after Rocky’s dive
Would dive on a dirt field
These scars on our arms weren’t gained on the cheap
Don’t frighten us of de Gea’s saves!

[Chorus] We are the ones that would hit the gum pics with our hands*
We have tasted the difficult times
We want to be the posters on the walls of your homes
Those days are over and we’ve grown

Who are their big ones? Ramos and Castán?
They wouldn't be an issue for our kids
Their dribblers are Isco and Alba?
They’ll both eat Ashkan’s slide [tackles]
Don’t say that Sergio Busquets is in the middle
Our legionnaires* will humiliate them
Our apologies, the scoreboard below up
It’s the hand throws of Beiranvand
Our team is well-versed in destroying opponents
If not, cake and drinks on us!

[Chorus] We are the ones that would hit the gum pictures with our hands
We have tasted the difficult times
We want to be the posters on the walls of your homes
Those days are over and we’ve grown

[Bandari portion]

Neymar Junior! Neymar!

Neymar…Neymar…we’ve come to Russia!
What a nightmare is Iran for you
Neymar…Neymar…we’ve come to Russia!
What a nightmare is Iran for you

Listen to my warning, remember what I said
Listen to my warning, remember what I said
Neymar, all of a sudden, we may sweep you up!
Neymar, all of a sudden, we may sweep you up!

[Chorus] Neymar…Neymar…we’ve come to Russia!
What a nightmare is Iran for you

Vey…mashallah…mashallah
Score one more!
Vey…mashallah…mashallah
Score one more!
…mashallah…mashallah
Score one more!
…mashallah…mashallah
Score one more!
…
We’ll meg Iniesta in a way that he wouldn't even know where it came from!
...mashallah…mashallah
Mohamed Salah, what do you think?
Ya…mashallah…mashallah
We are just missing Ebrahim Tahami on the team!
Ya…mashallah…mashallah
My life, Ahmad Abedzadeh!

Hey..hey..hey..hey..hey..hey..hey..hey
Hey..hey..hey..hey..hey..hey..hey..hey...

*This is a soft plastic ball sold at every cornerstone for a very cheap price in Iran. It is used for playing soccer by kids in the streets. It does not need to be inflated because the shell is a hard plastic layer that holds in the air, but at the same time it is too soft to play with in the streets without denting or piercing the outer shell. That is why kids buy two of them, tear one halfway open and wrap it around the second ball. As such, the ball becomes heavier and much harder to damage on the rough street surface. Almost every child in Iran has played with one. The image coincides with a strong sense of nostalgia and also reminds the older generation of the lack of available equipment for youth in the country.

*A simple street game that usually takes place between two players. The goals are made out of bricks, school backpacks, or any other random objects lying around. The two players stand in their respective goals and try to score against one another by kicking the ball towards each other’s goals. Each player is allowed one kick and no rebounds.

*During the 80s and 90s, the Aideen company produced a series of chewing gum that contained pictures of renowned soccer players. The goal was to collect as many as you could. It was hard to collect all the pictures and often times you'd get a lot of repeats, so a game was created by kids to exchange the pictures in a fair way. You would lay the pictures down, often on top of one another, and hit it hard with your hand. If the pictures flipped as a result of your hit, you would win the pictures you turned. The individual you played would get the same opportunity with the pictures you volunteered for the game.

*Iranians refer to players that play for foreign clubs during the year, but join the national team for international games as legionnaires.