From Streets To Spotlight: Alireza Beiranvand, Belgium’s Unlikely Nemesis
From Streets To Spotlight: Alireza Beiranvand, Belgium’s Unlikely Nemesis Published By, Last Updated: June 22, 2026, 08:43 IST Alireza Beiranvand, from nomadic roots to record
From Streets To Spotlight: Alireza Beiranvand, Belgium’s Unlikely Nemesis Published By, Last Updated: June 22, 2026, 08:43 IST Alireza Beiranvand, from nomadic roots to record breaking goalkeeper, inspires Iran with heroic saves against Belgium. Rapid Read Alireza Beiranvand was Iran's hero against Belgium (Picture credit: AP) Star Iranian goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand on Sunday, June 21, was the hero for his team, as he stood like a wall against Belgium, helping his team salvage a 0-0 draw against the European biggies. So much so that Belgium’s forwards would have gone to bed haunted by the sight of Beiranvand’s giant gloved fists. The tenacity and the will to fight probably came from the upbringing. As a child, life wasn’t the easiest for Beiranvand. Born in Sarabias in Iran’s Lorestan province, Beiranvand grew up in a nomadic family that moved across the countryside in search of grazing land, with shepherding as his early responsibility. Whenever Beiranvand found a spare moment, he would play football or Dal Paran, a traditional local game, with his friends. Dal Paran involves hurling stones over long distances, a pastime that seems to have little connection with football. Yet, years later, the game would play a role in shaping one of Beiranvand’s greatest strengths. When Beiranvand was 12, his family settled in Sarabias and he joined a local football team. He played as a striker, but when the team’s goalkeeper suffered an injury, he stepped between the posts.
One outstanding save was enough to convince everyone that Beiranvand belonged there. He soon decided that goalkeeping was his future, although his father opposed the idea. “My father did not like football at all and he asked me to work. He even tore my clothes and gloves and I played with bare hands several times," Beiranvand had told The Guardian back in 2018. Beiranvand debuted for Iran in 2015, four years after leaving home to pursue football. Three years later, he made history at the 2018 FIFA World Cup by saving a penalty from Cristiano Ronaldo. In the years between those milestones, Beiranvand also returned home and reconciled with his father. Beiranvand borrowed money from a relative and boarded a bus to Tehran. Fortune smiled on him almost immediately. During the journey, he met football coach Hossein Feiz, who managed a local team. Feiz offered him an opportunity to train with the team in exchange for 200,000 toman (Rs 2). But the young goalkeeper had neither the money nor a place to stay. Beiranvand spent his nights around Azadi Tower, where many poor migrants gathered. One evening, a young salesman offered him a place to stay at his home and the goalkeeper accepted. But on his way there, Beiranvand changed his mind and turned back, choosing instead to return to the club where he continued training on trial every day. “I slept by the club’s door and when I got up in the morning I noticed the coins that people had dropped for me.
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