Tehrangeles, Los Angeles’ little Iran: ‘That national team does not represent Iran; it represents the Islamic Republic of Iran’
Near the famous Beverly Hills neighborhood there is an area of Los Angeles with a curious name: Tehrangeles, a portmanteau of Tehran and Los Angeles. It does not have the glamour or purchasing power of the TV-famous zip code, but lately it has drawn a lot of attention. For decades it has concentrated a significant number of Iranian businesses and is the destination for the large Iranian community living in the United States, far from the ayatollahs’ regime. After four months under the spotlight because of the war between the two countries, the current buzz is that Iran’s national team will play its first two World Cup matches in the Californian capital: on June 15 against New Zealand and June 21 against Belgium.
