FIFA President Sepp Blatter[/caption]FIFA President Sepp Blatter has called on Iran to begin admitting female patrons atthe countrys soccer arenas. Blatters appeal came in the form of an essay published inFIFAs weekly magazine.
Citing March 8, which is recognized as International Womens Day and is a big holiday in several countries, Blatter writes of histravels to Iran in 2013 when he learned about two things: the countrys love of soccer and its law that bans women from entering stadiums.
I raised the topic at my meeting with President of Iran Hassan Rouhani, and came away with the impression that this intolerable situation could change over the medium term. However, nothing has happened, Blatter, who is seeking a fifth term as FIFA president, writes. A collective stadium ban still applies to women in Iran, despite the existence of a thriving womens football organization. This cannot continue. Hence, my appeal to the Iranian authorities: Open the nations football stadiums to women!
The law Blatter refers to was imposed after the 1979 Islamic Revolution and is based on areligious ideaof keepingmale and female crowds apart.
In the last year, however, people have ramped up protests of the law, which doesnt just apply to soccer stadiums. In the most high-profile incident,a 25-year-old British-Iranian woman was actually jailed last yearfor attempting to watch a mens volleyball game.
Ghoncheh Ghavami came to the volleyball game on June 20 with a group of women intentionally to protest the law. After being arrested, however, she found herself serving 41 days in solitary confinement before being released on bail in November, theTelegraphreports.
Another group protested the law earlier this year during soccers Asian Cup in Australia,CNNreports. Thousands of female fans of Iran attended the match against Iraq, where they held up a banner referencing Ghavami and her case.
Blatter does not reference the growing protests, but instead cites statistics, which he believes proves women should not be ignored.
Twenty years ago, I said that the future of football is feminine. Nowadays, more than 30 million girls and women play football in all 209 FIFA member associations, Blatter writes. Womens football is booming, especially at junior levels: 14 percent of all young players are female.
He continues:
The potential for growth is greater than in any other area of our sport, and the opportunity to overcome social and community barriers is even more pronounced. Even in territories where women are all but invisible for culturalreasons, football can instill a sense of purpose and self-worth that is too often denied them in their everyday lives.
Blatters championship of gender equality is a nice gesture from FIFA, which was recently taken to court over gender discrimination allegations leveled by several top female soccer players. Led by Team USAs Abby Wambach and supported by dozens of others, the players protested FIFAs approval of a plan to play the 2015 Womens World Cup in Canada on artificial turf, which the players considered an inferior surface compared to natural grass. No mens World Cup has ever been played on artificial turf.The players withdrew the lawsuitin January, however, and FIFAs artificial turf plan remains unchanged.
By The Washington Post
