Zahra Pashaei, a 29-year-old nurse, told Associated
Press. “At least for me, 22 or 23 years of longing and
regret lies behind this.”
In the previous decade, any visitor to the Azadi
would have seen women protesting outside at
not being allowed in. And as authorities became
increasingly annoyed by this, so the women moved
to social media to spread their message and keep
international media informed. The news early in 2018
that regional rival Saudi Arabia was finally allowing
women into their stadiums left Tehran even more
isolated. And something had to give after the death
of Sahar Khodayari.
The 29-year-old female fan of Esteghlal had been
arrested for trying to enter a stadium, disguised as a
man, to watch her club in March and, after reportedly
hearing she could spend six months in prison, she
set herself on fire on September 2 and died of her
injuries six days later.
There was outcry both inside and outside a country
which loves its football. Members of the national team
expressed their sorrow and anger at the tragedy,
while bitter Tehran rivals Persepolis and Esteghlal
were united in their grief. Fans around the country
sang in honour of Sahar, who became known as
“Blue Girl” due to the colours of Esteghlal.
WORLD SERVICE
Despite such gender discrimination breaking its
basic principles FIFA did little except call upon Iran to
change. The world governing body has suspended
federations for less and even did so with the FFIRI in
2006 for political interference in the running of the
game. Campaigners wanted FIFA to ban Iran again, as
being thrown out of the World Cup – which doubles
up as the qualifying campaign for the 2023 Asian
Cup – would have been a huge blow for a country
already isolated internationally.
In the past, the FFIRI has made the occasional
gesture, enough to keep FIFA and hardliners in the
country from getting too upset. Women were allowed
in the Azadi in June 2018 to watch Iran’s World Cup
games on big screens. Around 100 hand-picked
fans watched a friendly against Bolivia and then, in
November, around 1,000 supporters of Persepolis
watched the AFC Champions League Final.
Such moves garnered plenty of international media
attention but many inside the country felt that this
made their job harder as it reduced pressure to bring
about meaningful change. But the death of Blue Girl
touched a nerve all around the world. FIFA’s talk
became stronger and president Gianni Infantino
demanded women be allowed in against Cambodia.
On the face of it, this was a big step - but not all
are convinced. Much depends on what happens next.
A repeat of the Cambodia game is not sustainable
as people will not accept just 10,000 tickets or so
being sold. Men will be allowed back to the Azadi in
numbers when World Cup qualification resumes at
home next year. The question is, will women? And
if so, how many and will they be allowed to buy
tickets on the open market? If they are not then the
pressure will return. It is not just about the national
team either. As things stand, women still can’t go and
watch league games in the country.
All that has happened so far is that a small number
of women were allowed to watch Iran play Cambodia
after severe pressure. It is only a step in the right
direction if the journey continues. Otherwise, despite
the feel-good factor against Cambodia that even had
Keisuke Honda smiling, it is just a gesture.Thanks...
Iran’s players
acknowledge their
female supportSupport...female
fans watch Iran
beat Cambodia