KANSAS CITY, Mo — The stakes are high as Team USA is set to play against Iran Tuesday at 1 p.m., with both teams needing a win to make it to the knockout stage of the World Cup.
The critical match has also been the center of controversy after a social media account affiliated with U.S. Soccer Federation released a picture Iranian media dubbed as racist.
"The future of U.S. and Iranian relations will be shaped by diplomats and the president," said Matt Harris, an assistant political science professor at Park University. "These little moments that take place within the context of a sporting event, they take on added significance."
A spokesperson for U.S. Soccer told CNN the image, which failed to include the Islamic emblem, was to show support for the ongoing unrest in Iran to give women basic human rights. FIFA has yet to respond to the ongoing controversy, but Iranian media says the picture violated FIFA's statute against discrimination and is calling for FIFA to take disciplinary action against Team USA and disqualify the team from the tournament. Park University is set to hold a public discussion on rising tensions among both nations ahead of the 1 p.m. match.
"I was thinking about a 'Miracle on Ice' as another another one of the events where you see sort of the added weight that we put on sporting events," Harris said.
"Miracle on Ice" refers to Team USA's gold medal win against the Soviet Union during the 1980 winter games. Tensions between both countries were at a critical point, since the match came following the Cold War.
USMNT says they were unaware of the altered image of the flag and offered an apology for the display.
"Whether you want to talk about kneeling during the anthem, whether you want to talk about the Black Lives Matter protests we've seen in the NBA, I don't think it's possible to separate sports and politics because athletes have political views like the rest of us and they have a platform to express them," Harris said.