🔻Esteghlal club announced that by selecting Niloofar Hojati as head coach, a women’s volleyball team for Esteghlal will be formed soon. The women’s volleyball team of Taj was among the top forces in Iranian volleyball before the Islamic Revolution and remained active for a few years afterward, but in the 1980s it became a victim of the policies of the Islamic Republic in women’s sports.

🔹Now Esteghlal has reached an agreement with Niloofar Hojati to form a women’s volleyball team. The new Esteghlal coach was one of the coaches of Iran’s women’s national volleyball team at the 2026 Asian Championship. The team finished fourth in Asia; the best result in the history of Iranian women’s volleyball in Asia.

🔹The former Iran national team player also has a record of coaching Sarik Gorgan, the team associated with Sardar Azmoun. Hojati led Sarik to the final in the first season of her presence in the Premier League, and later won the women’s Premier League title with Saipa.

🔹Meanwhile, Esteghlal also announced that it has reached an agreement with Fatemeh Khalili, a member of Iran’s women’s national volleyball team and a player from Nîmes Olympique Bordeaux team in Turkey. She has played for teams including Shahرداری Qazvin, Zob Ahan Isfahan, Saipa Tehran, and Sepahan Isfahan.