TASHKENT, Uzbekistan — Iraqi soccer players don't mind driving across the desert and spending hours in airports to play games, even though they could find their country engulfed in war by the time they return home.
"We are following the news and the threats on Iraq," assistant coach Rahim Hamid said. "But life is still natural in Baghdad. We have to go on with our lives."
The Al Talaba club team of Iraq lost 1-0 to Pirouzi of Iran in a cold drizzle Sunday as part of the AFC Champions League. The tournament also includes teams from Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.
The Iraqis are scheduled to play two more games before the tournament ends Thursday, four days before a proposal by the United States and Britain setting a March 17 deadline for Iraq to disarm.
The Iraqi players brushed aside questions about whether their soccer rivalry with Iran has anything to do with the war their nations' fought in the 1980s, or whether they think their homeland could be under attack by the time they get back.
"The players don't worry about this," said Arkan Najeeb Shamroun, wearing a green warmup suit with Iraq written on the back.
The Iraqi team did not have an easy time getting to Tashkent. The trek started Thursday with a 465-mile drive to Syria, because U.N. sanctions ban commercial flights to and from Baghdad. Some airlines fly there, but those flights are neither regular nor frequent.
In Syria, the team waited 10 hours at the airport for a connection to Moscow, where they waited for another 10 hours in the airport before making the four-hour flight to Tashkent.
But the U.N. sanctions often prevent players from facing more experienced teams from abroad. Also, Baghdad has just one usable stadium for games.
Organizers contend that a matchup such as Iraq-Iran helps bridge the gap between nations.
"The aim of such tournaments is not to win or lose, it's to bring people together," said Mohamed al Nowaiser of Saudi Arabia, the match commissioner.