Afazali's tactical vision and practical savvy did not go unnoticed. After a friendly match between Iran national football team and Shahab Zanjan in Tehran, Iran's then head coach Miroslav Ciro Blazevic, who had already guided his Croatian side to third place in the 1998 World Cup, invited Afazeli to join the national team staff as technical adviser and analyst. After Ciro departed, Afazeli stayed with the national team for four more years with newly promoted Branko Ivanković He gained a gold medal in the 2002 Asian Games, third-place finish in 2004 AFC Asian Cup, a 2006 FIFA World Cup appearance with Iran, and more than 100 international matches as an assistant and analyst for the national team. He was brought back into the national team in 2008 under new coach Ali Daei.