Presstv - Former Iranian footballer Ali Daei has declined an invitation by the world’s soccer governing body to visit the Russian city of Kazan, where the Iran men’s national football team will take on Spain in a 2018 Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup Group B fixture.
The 49-year-old, who currently manages Iran’s Persian Gulf Pro League club Saipa Tehran, offered his profound apologies for the rejection, citing his efforts to reconstruct homes devastated in the quake that struck western Iran last November.
The quake measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale rattled the border region between Iran and Iraq on November 152 2017, causing extensive damage and loss of life.
According to official figures, at least 432 people lost their lives and over 7,817 others sustained injuries in the earthquake. More than 12,000 homes were also been completely destroyed in the incident.