Following two dismal years, in the summer of 2005, the club was sold by Rabti & Ghani to an Iranian construction tycoon living abroad.

With the new investments, a trip to Dubai and a place to call home (Shahid Dastgerdi Stadium), Ekbatan was tipped as a possible promotion candidate.

The club continued a losing run and Rabti was sacked with 5 games left, though he would remain on the board until the end of the season.

Team scout and Ekbatan legend Hadi Ahangaran was given the task of fighting relegation and keeping the club in the league.

In preparation for the next season, Ekbatan made some high-profile changes to the backroom staff including Farhad Kazemi as "special advisor to the Board".

Major changes in the team followed, with only 6 players remaining from the previous season, and this time, the club set their sights on a more modest mid table finish.

Following the takeover, Steel Azin's youth academy was completely recreated by former Iranian national team coach Heshmat Mohajerani.

Players included national team goalkeeper Ebrahim Mirzapour, Davoud Fanaei, Hamed Kavianpour, Ali Ansarian and Mohammad Parvin.

Star signings followed and even foreign based players like Lek Kcira, Leonard Kweuke and Iranians Ferydoon Zandi and Amir Shapourzadeh.

Despite all of this, Steel Azin's first season in the Iranian Premier League was a disaster, as the club finished in fifth place, with the blame put largely on their defence.

Due to the poor results, major investments, and a star-studded lineup, the nickname of "FC Hollywood" was given to the club by the media.

The following year, Steel Azin finished in 10th place but was later fined by FIFA and docked 12 points which led to their relegation to the third division.