On October 10, thousands of Iranian women packed Azadi or Freedom stadium in Tehran to watch their side thrash Cambodia.
The football match itself didn’t make headlines, but the female spectators cheering their team on, garnered a lot of attention. That’s because Iranian women are forbidden from entering stadiums. But pressure from the international community and football’s governing body FIFA changed that, at least for now.
To discuss:
- Elmira Jafari is an Iranian journalist and CGTN America producer.
- Shahrzad Khayatian is an Iranian human rights activist.
- Katayoun Khosrowyar was a former head coach of Iran’s Under 19 women’s National Team.
- Nadereh Chamlou was a former senior adviser to the Chief Economist at the World Bank.
For more:
Women in Iran got to watch a FIFA soccer game from inside a stadium for the first time in almost 40 years.
Last month, a woman died after burning herself over a jail sentence for violating Iran's male-only policy for stadiums. pic.twitter.com/cU6hd1KEbt
— AJ+ (@ajplus) October 10, 2019
40 years after the Islamic Revolution, #Iran has finally allowed women to enter the national football stadium. In other news, women have been allowed to join army. Is this real reform or tokenism in the face of criticism? This report by @palkisu exploreshttps://t.co/Dv7rnQqeeN
— WION (@WIONews) October 10, 2019