Iran Women to See Football Freely for First Time in Decades

By Amir Havasi

Iranian women fans are free to enter a football stadium Thursday for the first time in decades, after FIFA threatened to suspend the Islamic republic over its controversial male-only policy.

Iran has barred female spectators from football and other stadiums for around 40 years, with clerics arguing they must be shielded from the masculine atmosphere and sight of semi-clad men.

World football's governing body FIFA last month ordered Iran to allow women access to stadiums without restrictions and in numbers determined by demand for tickets.
The directive came after a fan dubbed "Blue Girl" died after setting
herself on fire in fear of being jailed for dressing up as a boy in order to
attend a match.

Women were quick to get their hands on tickets to attend Iran's 2022 World Cup qualifier against Cambodia at Tehran's Azadi Stadium on Thursday.

The first batch sold out in under an hour, and additional seats were also snapped up in short order, state media said.

A sports ministry official said the 100,000-capacity stadium—whose name means "Freedom" in Farsi—was ready to host even more women.

One of the 3,500 women to have secured a ticket was Raha Poorbakhsh, a football journalist.

"I still can't believe this is going to happen because after all these years of working in this field, watching everything on television, now I can experience everything in person," she told AFP.

'Blue Girl'

But Poorbakhsh said she was aware of many other women without tickets and some were expected to travel from as far away as Ahvaz in southern Iran in the hope of still getting one.

Those lucky enough to attend will be segregated from men and watched over by 150 female police officers, according to Fars news agency.

People on the streets of Tehran said they supported the decision to allow women into stadiums.

"I would like there to be freedom for women, like men, to go freely and even sit side by side without any restrictions, like other countries," said a woman who only gave her name as Hasti.

Nader Fathi, who runs a clothing business, said the presence of women could improve the atmosphere in stadiums.

But he said "they will regret it" if they are exposed to "really bad swear words" and "bad behavior".

The bumpy road Iranian women have travelled in order to gain free access to stadiums has not been without tragedy.

Sahar Khodayari died last month after setting herself ablaze outside a court in fear of being jailed for attending a match.

Dubbed "blue girl" because of the colors of the club she supported, Esteghlal FC, she had reportedly been detained last year when trying to enter a stadium dressed as a boy.

Her death sparked an outcry, with many calling on FIFA to ban Iran and for fans to boycott matches.

Judiciary spokesman Gholamhossein Esmaili at the time dismissed reports she had been told she would be jailed for six months as "fabricated rumours and hearsay.”

And Khodayari's father told Mehr news agency that she did not "sacrifice" herself for any cause.

Shadow of FIFA

Ahead of Qatar 2022, Iran has come under pressure from FIFA to allow women to attend this round of World Cup qualifiers.

The ban on women in stadiums is not written into law or regulations, but it has been strictly enforced.

Since the 1979 Islamic revolution, women have only had rare access to stadiums in Iran.

About 20 Irish women attended a World Cup qualifier in 2001, and four years later a few dozen Iranian women were allowed to watch the national "Team Melli" take on Bahrain.

In October, as many as 100 Iranian "handpicked" women entered Azadi for a friendly against Bolivia.

But the day after, the prosecutor general warned there would be no repeat, saying it would "lead to sin.”

The issue has been divisive in Iran.

The reformist camp has welcomed the decision to allow women into Thursday's match, while conservatives have argued that football is not a priority for women.

The Donya-e-Eqtesad financial newspaper called it "a step to weaken a taboo and also free Iran's football of the looming shadow of FIFA's punishment.”

But the ultra-conservative Keyhan daily said women were more concerned about economic issues

"There are many girls still single and at home, afraid of the cost of marriage. The government should be thinking of this, not sending them to stadiums," it quoted a mother as saying.

Photo: IRNA

Iran's World Cup Fever Bursts Out Into the Streets

Iranians had few options to watch their World Cup opener against Morocco, bar a few cinemas and cafes, but after their shock victory Friday, they burst out into the streets of Tehran in rare and wild celebration.

The mood had been dampened earlier in the day when the authorities announced that planned open-air screenings in parks and Tehran's largest stadium had been banned without explanation.

Many had been excited about watching the match at Azadi (meaning "freedom") stadium because it would have been the first time since the Islamic revolution that men and women could attend a sports event there together.

Instead, with no bars and mixed signals from police about whether cafes could screen the games, many of the city's football-mad population turned to cinemas to vent their passion.

Supporters thronged the steps of one multiplex in central Tehran ahead of the match, chanting and deafening passers-by with blasts of vuvuzela.

There was a notably even split between men and women. Football is particularly popular among Iranian women, in part because they are banned from attending live matches, lending it an illicit air.

"We hoped to go to the stadium but we are very happy to come here with my family. I'm not that optimistic (that we can win) but I'm just happy to be in the World Cup—that's enough," said Rahelleh, 32, with her young daughter in her arms and an Iran hat on her head.

But she was wrong.

An own goal by Morocco's Aziz Bouhaddouz in the 94th minute handed Iran their first World Cup victory in 20 years.

Within minutes, Tehranis had poured out on to the streets as if they had won the entire tournament.

Traffic on the city's main north-south artery, Vali Asr Street, reduced to a crawl as hundreds of cars blasted their horns and jubilant fans hung out of windows waving the Iranian flag and screaming.

'Feels Great'

"We have not had many things to celebrate recently, so this feels really great," said Amin, 30, as he watched an impromptu crowd of hundreds dancing and cheering in the middle of the street.

By midnight, pounding music and fireworks could be heard across the city and the whooping showed no sign of letting up.

Police appeared happy to let it continue despite such public displays of jollity—particularly men and women together—normally prohibited in the Islamic republic.

The victory was all the sweeter given the rough journey the players have faced, with Portuguese coach Carlos Quieroz complaining about limited resources and poor facilities for the squad.

The players were also the latest victim of US sanctions, with Nike refusing to provide the team with football boots, saying it would breach the US trade embargo on Iran.

That quickly gave rise to a popular meme on social media after the victory with the Nike logo and an altered slogan reading: "We just did it. Without you."

The team faces a tall order in recreating Friday's jubilation as they go on to face two of the world's best teams in Spain and Portugal.

But Iranians always revel in being the underdog.

In a profile for GQ magazine this week, Quieroz said: "Iran loves football, and people know we have problems and now look at Iran differently, more respectfully because they know the challenges we have."

Iranians arrive to watch the World Cup Group B soccer match between Morocco and Iran at Azadi cinema in Tehran on June 15, 2018

Iranians celebrate in the streets of Tehran after their national football team won the the World Cup Group B soccer match between Morocco and Iran on June 15, 2018.

Photo Credit: Team Melli