Banned Bahrain soccer player joins Australian club

A Bahrain soccer player banned for taking part in anti-government protests has joined a team in Australia.

Defender Sayed Mohamed Adnan signed for one year with the Australian A-League champion Brisbane Roar. He said Tuesday that ''everybody here respects each other and they want to be champions. I like that.''

Adnan is a Shite Muslim and was one of several players not included on Bahrain's World Cup qualifying squad last week. He had been detained earlier in the year for protesting the Gulf nation's Sunni rulers. His ban in Bahrain was part of a widespread crackdown on dissent.

Adnan was the 2009 Asian Player of the Year runner-up. He has made 79 appearance for Bahrain, scoring 13 goals.