A hundred Iranian women could exceptionally witness this Tuesday October 16, 2018, at the Azadi stadium in Tehran the friendly football match between Iran and Bolivia. Without being a novelty, this female presence in the stands is rare in an Islamic republic where women have no right to go to the stadium to see men playing football.

With Iranian flags, the fans were placed in a separate stand of men and attended the triumph of their selection by 2-1 against Bolivia. Shortly before, the website Varzesh3, specialized in sports information, had indicated that local authorities had authorized a limited number of women to attend the meeting: "relatives of the players and coaches, members of the women's teams, employees of the federation and some fans. "

Since the triumph of the Islamic revolution in 1979, women have been banned from entering the stadium in male soccer games, officially to protect them from the rude actions of men. This measure is regularly criticized within the Iranian political system itself. Iranian President Hassan Rohani, who happens to be moderate, expressed on several occasions his willingness to see women enter the stadiums, but this project clashes with the opposition of the ultra-conservative clan.

On June 26, however, several thousand women, accompanied by members of their families, had been authorized to enter the Azadi stadium for a live broadcast on the big screen of the Iran-Portugal match during the World Cup in Russia. In September 2017, a small number of women elected in Parliament had been authorized to attend a qualification match for the World Cup between Russia and Iran.

Source: AFP News Agency