Ali Daei

**Ali Daei** (; born 21 March 1969) is an Iranian soccer player. He was the captain of the Iranian national team for many years and played in Germany's top league. He was a great scorer and known for his strong headers. Daei was the world's top international goal-scorer for a long time until Cristiano Ronaldo scored more goals. After he stopped playing, Daei worked for FIFA and was named a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador.

### Relationships

Iranian journalist Camelia Entekhabifard mentioned in her memoir that she married Ali Daei in 1997, but the couple later separated.

### Business Ventures and Philanthropy

Ali Daei owns a sportswear company called **Daei Sport's Wears & Equipments**, which produces jerseys for Iranian sports clubs and teams worldwide, including the Iranian national team. He has made large charitable donations and participated in charity football matches globally. He appeared in events like the "World vs. Bosnia" match alongside players like Roberto Baggio and in a UNICEF commercial with David Beckham and Madeleine Albright. On 18 July 2007, Daei played for 10 minutes in a match called **90 Minutes for Mandela**, celebrating Nelson Mandela’s birthday.

### Religion

Daei is a Shia Muslim. While playing for Bayern Munich, he refused to pose with a glass of beer for an Erdinger advertisement, as alcohol is forbidden in his religion.

### Autobiography

In 2008, Daei announced he was writing an autobiography that would cover both good and difficult moments in his life. The book was supposed to release in 2010, but it has not yet been published.

### Accident

On 17 March 2012, Daei’s car overturned while driving from Isfahan to Tehran with his brother after his team, Rah Ahan, lost a match. He was taken to a hospital in Kashan and later moved to Laleh Hospital in Tehran. The **Asian Football Confederation (AFC)** and FIFA President Sepp Blatter wished him a speedy recovery.

### Street Attack

In November 2020, Daei was attacked by two thieves trying to steal his gold necklace in Tehran. Police arrested the thieves a few days later.

### Politics and Activism

On 26 December 2022, a flight carrying Daei’s wife and daughter to Dubai was forced to return to Kish Island. This incident happened after Daei showed support for anti-government protests in Iran.

## Club career statistics

|-
|1994/95||rowspan="2"|Persepolis||rowspan="2"|Azadegan League||25||15
|-
|1995/96||13||8

|-
|1996/97||Al-Sadd||Stars League||16||10

|-
|1997/98||Arminia Bielefeld||Bundesliga||25||7
|-
|1998/99||Bayern Munich||Bundesliga||23||6
|-
|1999/00||rowspan="3"|Hertha Berlin||rowspan="3"|Bundesliga||28||3
|-
|2000/01||23||3
|-
|2001/02||8||0

|-
|2002/03||Al-Shabab Dubai||UAE League||25||11

|-
|2003/04||Persepolis||Pro League||28||16
|-
|2004/05||rowspan="2"|Saba Battery||rowspan="2"|Pro League||25||12
|-
|2005/06||26||11
|-
|2006/07||Saipa||Persian Gulf Cup||26||10
143||72
16||10
107||19
25||11
291||112
|}

## International career statistics

|-
|1993||16||7
|-
|1994||1||0
|-
|1995||0||0
|-
|1996||18||22
|-
|1997||17||9
|-
|1998||13||9
|-
|1999||5||2
|-
|2000||19||20
|-
|2001||16||10
|-
|2002||4||2
|-
|2003||9||5
|-
|2004||16||17
|-
|2005||9||4
|-
|2006||6||2
|-
!Total||149||109
|}

## Other websites

- Ali Daei: The Iranian Football Legend
- Ali Daei on FIFA

## Infobox (person)

- **child**: yes
- **awards**:  Order of Courage (Iran), Order of Courage <small>(3rd class)</small>


## Infobox (football biography)

- **name**: Ali Daei
- **image**: Ali Daei 2016.jpg
- **image size**: 250px
- **caption**: Daei in 2016
- **fullname**: Ali Daei
- **birth place**: Ardabil, Iran
- **position**: Centre forward, Striker
- **currentclub**: Saipa F.C., Saipa (manager)
- **youthyears1**: 1983–1988
- **youthclubs1**: Esteghlal Ardabil
- **years1**: 1988–1989
- **clubs1**: Esteghlal Ardabil
- **years2**: 1989–1990
- **clubs2**: Taxirani
- **years3**: 1990–1994
- **clubs3**: Bank Tejarat F.C., Bank Tejarat
- **years4**: 1994–1996
- **clubs4**: Persepolis F.C., Persepolis
- **caps4**: 38
- **goals4**: 28
- **years5**: 1996–1997
- **clubs5**: Al-Sadd Sports Club, Al-Sadd
- **caps5**: 16
- **goals5**: 10
- **years6**: 1997–1998
- **clubs6**: Arminia Bielefeld
- **caps6**: 25
- **goals6**: 7
- **years7**: 1998–1999
- **clubs7**: FC Bayern Munich, Bayern Munich
- **caps7**: 23
- **goals7**: 6
- **years8**: 1999–2002
- **clubs8**: Hertha BSC
- **caps8**: 59
- **goals8**: 6
- **years9**: 2002–2003
- **clubs9**: Al Shabab Al Arabi Club, Al Shabab
- **caps9**: 25
- **goals9**: 11
- **years10**: 2003–2004
- **clubs10**: Persepolis FC, Persepolis
- **caps10**: 28
- **goals10**: 16
- **years11**: 2004–2006
- **clubs11**: Saba Battery F.C., Saba Battery
- **caps11**: 51
- **goals11**: 23
- **years12**: 2006–2007
- **clubs12**: Saipa F.C., Saipa
- **caps12**: 26
- **goals12**: 10
- **totalcaps**: 287
- **totalgoals**: 152
- **nationalyears1**: 2002
- **nationalteam1**: Iran national under-23 football team, Iran U23
- **nationalcaps1**: 3
- **nationalgoals1**: 3
- **nationalyears2**: 1993–2006
- **nationalteam2**: Iran national football team, Iran
- **nationalcaps2**: 149
- **nationalgoals2**: 109
- **manageryears1**: 2006–2008
- **managerclubs1**: Saipa F.C., Saipa
- **manageryears2**: 2008–2009
- **managerclubs2**: Iran national football team, Iran
- **manageryears3**: 2009–2011
- **managerclubs3**: Persepolis F.C., Persepolis
- **manageryears4**: 2011–2013
- **managerclubs4**: Rah Ahan F.C., Rah Ahan
- **manageryears5**: 2013–2014
- **managerclubs5**: Persepolis F.C., Persepolis
- **manageryears6**: 2015–2016
- **managerclubs6**: Saba Qom F.C., Saba Qom
- **manageryears7**: 2016–2017
- **managerclubs7**: Naft Tehran F.C., Naft Tehran
- **manageryears8**: 2017–
- **managerclubs8**: Saipa F.C., Saipa