Australia granted asylum to five players from the Iranian women’s soccer team who were visiting for a tournament when the U.S.-Israeli attacks against Iran began.

Australian federal police officers on Tuesday transported the five women from their hotel in Gold Coast, Australia, to a “safe location” after they made asylum requests to meet with Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke and to finalize the processing of their humanitarian visas.

“Last night I was able to tell five women from the Iranian Women’s Soccer team that they are welcome to stay in Australia, to be safe and have a home here,” Burke said on X.

The move comes after the team refused to sing the Iranian anthem before their first Women’s Asian Cup match early last week against South Korea, although they later sang and saluted the anthem in two subsequent matches, including ahead of their final match, when they were eliminated by the Philippines.

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“I don’t want to begin to imagine how difficult that decision is for each of the individual women, but certainly last night it was joy, it was relief,” Burke told reporters after signing the documents. “People were very excited about embarking on a life in Australia.”

The five women said they were happy for their names and pictures to be published, according to Burke, who emphasized that the players wanted to make clear that they were not political activists.

The Iranian team arrived in Australia for the tournament before the war against Iran began on Feb. 28.

After the team was eliminated from the tournament over the weekend, they faced potentially returning to a country still under bombardment. The team’s head coach, Marziyeh Jafari, said on Sunday the players “want to come back to Iran as soon as we can.”

An official squad list named 26 players, as well as Jafari and other coaches.

While only five players were granted asylum, Burke said the offer was given to everyone on the team.

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“These women are tremendously popular in Australia, but we realize they are in a terribly difficult situation with the decisions that they’re making,” Burke said. “The opportunity will continue to be there for them to talk to Australian officials if they wish to.”

It remains unclear when the remaining players will leave Australia.

“Australians have been moved by the plight of these brave women,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told reporters. “They’re safe here and they should feel at home here.”

“They then had to consider that and do it in a way that did not present any danger to them or to their families and friends back home in Iran,” he continued.

The asylum offer came after U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday called on Australia to grant asylum to any team member who wanted it.

Trump had blasted Australia on social media, saying Australia was “making a terrible humanitarian mistake” by allowing the team to be “forced back to Iran, where they will most likely be killed.”

“The U.S. will take them if you won’t,” Trump said, despite his administration’s efforts to limit the number of immigrants in the U.S. who can receive asylum for political purposes.

Just hours later, Trump praised Albanese in another post.

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“He’s on it! Five have already been taken care of, and the rest are on their way,” Trump wrote.

Albanese said Trump had called him for “a very positive conversation,” about the issue. The prime minister said he explained “the action that we’d undertaken over the previous 48 hours” to support the women.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

The famed Magic City adult entertainment club won’t be featured at next week’s Atlanta Hawks promotional night, the NBA announced on Monday.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver acknowledged concerns from others in the league on Monday, saying that his decision to cancel the collaboration is in the best interests of the “broader NBA community.”

“While we appreciate the team’s perspective and their desire to move forward,” he said in a statement, “we have heard significant concerns from a broad array of league stakeholders, including fans, partners and employees.”

The Hawks announced its “Magic City Monday” promotion in late February, featuring a halftime performance by Atlanta-based artist T.I., a collaborative hoodie and the offering of some of the club’s popular wings, including the lemon-pepper variety named after former Hawks player Lou Williams.

Hawks principal owner Jami Gertz was a producer on “Magic City: An American Fantasy,” a docuseries that aired on Starz. Still, the team’s decision to collaborate with the Atlanta strip club ruffled some feathers in the NBA.

San Antonio Spurs center Luke Kornet asked the Hawks to cancel the promotional night in a post on Medium last week, saying that it would “reflect poorly on us as an NBA community, specifically in being complicit in the potential objectification and mistreatment of women in our society.”

Others had argued that Magic City is a big part of Atlanta culture and should be celebrated as such.

The Hawks wrote in a statement on Monday that it was disappointed with the NBA’s decision but would respect it.

Rapper T.I. will still perform at halftime, but the live recording of the Hawks AF Podcast featuring Gertz, T.I. and Magic City founder Michael Barney was canceled. Fans who pre-ordered the collaboration hoodie will still receive one, but the sweatshirts won’t be available for purchase at the game, the Hawks wrote on X.

“As a franchise, we remain committed to celebrating the best of Atlanta — with authenticity — in ways that continue to unite and bring us all together,” the Hawks wrote.

Times staff writer Chuck Schilken contributed to this report

NFL free agency is here!

Well, kind of.

The league’s so-called legal tampering period begins Monday at 9 a.m. PT, when teams are allowed to start negotiating with the agents for players who are about to become unrestricted free agents. No contracts can actually be signed, however, until the the start of the new NFL league year, which is Wednesday at 1 p.m. PT.

So, basically, fans will start finding out what moves their teams make and where various players will land starting Monday morning.

Hours before the legal tampering period started, the Miami Dolphins announced they will release longtime quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. The 2023 All Star will count $99 million against the Dolphins’ salary cap, the biggest dead cap hit in NFL history. The money can be split over the next two seasons if Tagovailoa is designated a post-June 1 release.

In six years with the Dolphins, Tagovailoa went 44-32 as a starter, completing 68% of his passes for 18,166 yards with 120 touchdowns and 59 interceptions. He made the Pro Bowl in 2023.

“Wearing this jersey and representing this city has been one of the greatest joys of my life,” Tagovailoa wrote Monday on Instagram, adding: “I also carry deep regret that I couldn’t get the job done and bring a championship home to this city. Miami deserves that, and I’ll always wish I could have delivered it for you.”

Who are some of the other big names in the free agency market? As far as quarterbacks are concerned, Green Bay Packers backup Malik Willis could be a hot commodity. Daniel Jones is a free agent after a strong season with Indianapolis, although the Colts placed the transition tag on him and can match any offer.

Veteran quarterback Kyler Murray was informed by the Arizona Cardinals last week that they will be letting him go at the start of the new league year. The Atlanta Falcons have made a similar announcement regarding Kirk Cousins. Other available veteran quarterbacks include Aaron Rodgers, Joe Flacco, Russell Wilson and Marcus Mariota.

Teams in need of a running back might be interested in the services of Kenneth Walker III, who will be a free agent just weeks after he was named Super Bowl LX MVP as a member of the Seattle Seahawks. Travis Etienne of the Jacksonville Jaguars could also find a new home.

This also seems to be a big year for free agent edge rushers (including Trey Hendrickson, Jaelan Phillips, Odafe Oweh, K’Lavon Chaisson and Boye Mafe) and wide receivers (including Alec Pierce, Mike Evans, Romeo Doubs, Rashid Shaheed and Jauan Jennings).

Check back here for updates as teams begin making moves.