Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Evo Morales team up for soccer win

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Evo Morales have long been on the same side politically.Now the presidents of Iran and Bolivia—both harsh critics of the United States—have literally teamed up, playing a friendly game of five-a-side soccer with professional players during Morales's state visit to Tehran.State-run television on Wednesday showed Ahmadinejad scoring off a corner pass from Morales. Another shot, after a nifty one-two-one manoeuvre with the Bolivian, was blocked by the goalkeeper.The game ended 4-4 after regular time and the presidents went on to win 8-6 after a penalty shoot-out.The contest appeared to be good-natured and there was no repeat of an incident earlier this month when Morales kneed a rival player in the groin after a heavy tackle—sending him falling to the ground in agony—at a game in La Paz.A week after his ally, Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, visited Tehran, Morales' trip added support for Iran which is coping with tightened sanctions imposed by countries that fear the Islamic Republic is seeking nuclear weapons, a charge it denies.Like Chavez, Morales often calls the United States "the empire".Iranian politicians often refer to America—which cut ties after the 1979 Islamic revolution and the Tehran embassy hostage crisis—as the "great Satan".

Washington has led the push for international sanctions against Iran.