Perhaps football fans in the stadiums of the world are only worried that their team will not score and lose the match, in Iran, but apart from this worry, the fans are afraid that suddenly they are empty under their feet and they have won. I don’t see the end game at all!
According to the informants, “More than 200 years ago, there was an irregular forest on the banks of a river in Esfrin, where two nomadic tribes lived. One of the khans of the Aisha tribe, named Zayn al-Abidin, had a spring in this area, which was also named after Zainal Khan. .
After a while, Zain al-Abidin Khan sold Nabaa and moved from that area. After some time, another tribe moved from that area and there was no more people in that area. Next to it was a hollow spring surrounded by four hills, which caused the formation of a natural stadium in that area.”
Ali Artman, a veteran wrestler with Chokheh North Khorasan, told informants.
Every April, traditional wrestling matches are held at this place, and due to the great reception of the people, stands have been installed for the fans so that Gud Zainel Khan can fully find the shape of a sports ground. This venue seats around 30,000 people, although more than 40,000 people always attend and closely watch the matches.
The high point of this big event is the presence of families in the pit – Zainal Khan stadium and family watching the matches; An event that has not happened yet in Iran’s big and small football stadiums.
Interesting side programs are also held on the sidelines of wrestling matches, which are watched by men and women, young and old. Traditional festivals and stalls selling handicrafts and local foods are among these things that provide a fun atmosphere for the matches and are a kind of entertainment and luxury facility for the families who come to watch.
Another point worth noting is that Tayeb Zainal Khan is completely safe! It does not have a sloping wall or worn-out concrete platform that falls off with the first rains. The spectators are not afraid of the platform collapsing, nor are they worried about an electric shock at the entrance gate.
This, as we said, is not a joke, it is a fear that is present every week in Iranian football stadiums. The child who was electrocuted and died near the entrance gate of Azadi Stadium is still immaculate. The bitter memory of the death of many people after Iran’s victory over Japan in the same stadium in the World Cup qualifiers is still fresh. We still haven’t forgotten that the stands of the Mottaki Sari stadium collapsed and two people died, and there are still such problems.
In the last derby, which was the 100th meeting between Persepolis and Esteghlal, only 15,000 people were allowed to attend Azadi Stadium’s 78,000 people, and when almost twice that number entered the stadium, with or without tickets, the risk of collapsing the stands was greater. From what I felt in advance, the spectators were evacuated from the second floor platforms!
Experience has shown that building a big football stadium in Iran is not easy. An example is the Naqsh-e Jahan in Isfahan, which took many years to build but still has many problems, or the Imam Reza stadium in Mashhad, which for various reasons cannot be expected to hold important matches such as derby. Most of the stadiums built in Iran in recent years can accommodate 15,000 spectators, and only one or two like Foolad’s main stadium have a larger capacity and are close to international standards.
With this description, perhaps it would be better to dig the ground than to build a stadium, so that we have stadiums like Zainal Khan Stadium, where we are at least certain that the stands will not collapse with 30, 40 thousand fans!
the end of the letter
