United States men’s national team manager Gregg Berhalter apologized for controversial U.S. Soccer Federation social media posts that removed the emblem of the Islamic Republic from Iran’s flag, saying that he and his players had no involvement or knowledge of the decision to do so.
“The players and the staff knew nothing about what was being posted,” Berhalter said during a press conference Monday, per ESPN’s Jeff Carlisle. “Sometimes things are out of our control. We believe that it’s going to be a match that the result will depend on who puts more effort in, who executes better on the field.