Leading figures in Iranian football have rejected calls from some members of Parliament in Germany, the hosts of the 2006 World Cup, to disqualify the Iran national football team from this year's World Cup Finals.

The MP’s, who are backed by the former 1974 World Cup winning West German international midfielder Wolfgang Overath, have suggested that Iran should be banned from taking part in the tournament following its resumption of nuclear fuel research, and the remarks made by the country's hardline president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad about Israel.

Amongst other comments, President Ahmadinejad has suggested that the Holocaust was “a myth”, a statement that, if said in Germany, could lead to a jail sentence, and has called for Israel to be “wiped off the map.”

In response to those comments, a small segment of German MP’s have argued that the Iran should not be allowed to play in a tournament that their country is hosting.

But Iran midfielder Hamed Kavianpour, who plays his club football at Tehran club Persepolis, said he doubted such a move would occur.

“Disqualify the team? I don't think such a thing would happen,” he told BBC World Service's World Football radio programme.

However, the Germany's Chancellor, Angela Merkel, ruled out such a decision.

“Disqualifying Iran's team from the World Cup would create an uproar in Iran,” said World Football's Roxana Saberi in Tehran.

Football is the most popular sport in Iran among men, and is attracting more and more women fans, even though among them, it is usually only government employees, athletes, and journalists who can manage to get to watch matches at the stadiums.

But football has been one thing that has recently shown any public emotion between the sexes in Iran. After Iran qualified last June for the World Cup, men and women poured into the streets, singing and dancing together in a rare public mingling of the genders in Iran.

Iranian fans turned out in thousands to meet German club side Bayern Munich when they played Persepolis in Tehran, in a recent friendly match, with many fans happy to see Ali Karimi, a former Persepolis player who now plays for Bayern Munich, back in his native country.

At the time, Bayern's sporting director, Uli Hoeness, said the game wasn’t in any way showing support for President Ahmadinejad, and that Bayern were “playing for the people, not for the regime.”

And Sayid Ali ipour Hosseini, a writer for the Iranian daily World Of Football, said sports should not mix with politics.

“Mr Ahmadinejad didn't qualify for the World Cup, the soccer team did - and the soccer team didn't say anything to be disqualified,” he said.

“Football is football. Politics is not football, it's politics.”

But Iran has history of mixing politics with sport, historically a favoured method of propaganda, and has refused to let its athletes compete in any competition against Israelis.

Meanwhile, last November, Iran barred South Korean company LG from sponsoring a four-nation tournament in Tehran. Members of Iran's conservative-dominated parliament said the move was in retaliation for South Korea's vote against Iran's nuclear program at a UN nuclear watchdog meeting.

“If these countries take new positions, we'll certainly make our own new views, too, whether it be in relation to culture, in relation to economics, or in relation to sports,” said Iranian MP Fatemeh Alliya.

“Our people expect the people in charge to act according to their wishes.”