With continuous pressure from FIFA regarding the women’s right to enter stadiums, finally on the 18th of Mehr 1398 (October 10, 2019), on the day of the match between the national teams of Iran and Cambodia, Iranian women were allowed to attend Azadi Stadium as spectators after forty years. After the presence of women in the stadium and that historic event, FIFA sent a delegation to Iran on December 10 (19 Azar 1998) to discuss and exchange opinions on finding a way to open the doors of stadiums to women.
In that meeting, the commitment was given by the then Deputy Minister of Sports (Mohammedreza Davarzani) and the then head of the Football Federation (Haider Baharond) that women, in addition to the national games, will be allowed in all the upcoming matches of the Asian Champions League that will be held in Iran. and attend all Persian Gulf League games from June (December).
In February of the same year, FIFA again emphasized the issue of the women’s right to enter stadiums for the Iran League games by sending a letter to the Iranian Football Federation, which was also managed under the supervision of Haider Baharond. It was mentioned in the text of the said letter:
“Subject: The end of the ban on participation of women in competitions in Iran
Mr. Chairman/Interim Supervisor During the recent months, our organizations have made great progress in ending the issue of women entering stadiums in Iran.
On October 10, 2019, we experienced a moment in history, when several thousand women were able to buy tickets and watch an important football game in Iran for the first time in four decades. This important step was made possible by the extraordinary professional efforts of the Iran Football Federation team and the relevant authorities, for which we express our gratitude to you and your government once again.
On December 10, 2019, a delegation from FIFA came to Iran to discuss and exchange views on finding a way to respect the women’s right to enter stadiums. A way to be realized based on the successful experience of October 10, 2019.
In that meeting, the following commitments were agreed by the Deputy Minister of Sports and Youth and the President of Iran Football Federation:
Women will be allowed to attend the Iran national team match against Hong Kong at Azadi Stadium on March 26, 2020.
With a significant increase in the number of seats available for women compared to the October 10, 2019 match, women will be allowed to play in all future AFC matches played in Iran.
Women will be allowed to participate in all national matches and Persian Gulf League matches from June 2020.
FIFA’s firm position remains that the transformation process must continue as agreed and I would like to re-assure you of FIFA’s full support in implementing the commitments agreed at the December 10, 2019 meeting. In this context, the FIFA delegation is going through the initial preparation steps to once again support the Iranian Football Federation team in implementing the implementation protocols for the next international match. “
FIFA’s last ultimatum to the Iranian Football Federation, regarding the lifting of the ban on the presence of women in stadiums, dates back to November 1400, when FIFA emphasized that if things such as amending the constitution of the Football Federation, privatization of clubs, non-interference of the government in football And if the ban on women entering the stadiums is not lifted until March 11, 1400, Iran’s football will be completely suspended and will be denied access to the World Cup.
Now the question is, based on which law or regulation does FIFA create such a requirement for federations, including the Iranian Football Federation?
In its various rules and regulations, FIFA has somehow mentioned the principle of prohibition of discrimination, including gender discrimination (banning women from entering stadiums is one of the discriminations against women due to their gender). For example, Article 13 of the “FIFA Disciplinary Code” approved in 2019 states:
1.Anyone (according to Article 3 of this regulation, the persons and entities that are subject to these regulations are: federations, members of federations, especially clubs, officials, players, match officials, intermediaries, official organizers friendly match, anyone selected or appointed by FIFA to carry out a mission, especially in relation to a match, tournament or other event organized by FIFA) who, through words or behavior (by any other means) insults, discriminates offensive, or hateful to the honor or integrity of a country, a person, or a group of people because of race, skin color, ethnicity, national or social roots, gender, disability, sexual orientation, language, religion, offends political opinion, wealth, birth or any other personal status or anything else, shall be suspended for at least 10 sessions or a specified period or punished by any other appropriate disciplinary action.
2.If one or more of the fans of a federation or club are involved in the behavior described in paragraph 1, the federation or club concerned will be subject to the following disciplinary measures:
- For the first time, playing with a limited number of spectators and a fine of at least 20,000 Swiss francs.
- In case of repetition or if it has the necessary conditions, disciplinary measures such as implementing a prevention plan, fine, deduction of points, playing one or more games without spectators, banning from playing in a certain stadium, preventing from attending a game, expulsion from Competitions or relegation can be applied to the respective federation or club.
3.People who have been the direct target of potentially discriminatory behavior can be invited by the relevant judicial body to present their statements orally or in writing.
4.Except in exceptional circumstances, if a match is stopped due to racist or discriminatory behavior by a referee, that match must be declared over as a penalty (with the offending team losing).
It is important to mention one point here, the principle of prohibition of discrimination mentioned in Article 13 and which prohibits all the people mentioned in Article 3 from engaging in such behaviors, only applies to competitions, events and people who They operate under the direct supervision of FIFA. In this way, punishing the Iranian Football Federation for carrying out behaviors containing the message of gender discrimination and not respecting the women’s right to enter stadiums (banning the presence of women in stadiums) in domestic matches or other matches that are not organized directly under the supervision of FIFA, citing The mentioned article is not possible. This issue is one of the criticisms of FIFA’s disciplinary regulations; Because it does not have the necessary comprehensiveness and does not include all official and unofficial competitions.
The competitions that are organized directly under the supervision of FIFA are: the World Cup in the adult, under-17, under-20 and youth categories, the Beach Soccer World Cup, the FIFA Futsal World Cup and the Confederations Cup, football in the games Summer Olympics, FIFA club competitions (Club World Cup, Women’s Club World Cup), FIFA competitions for women’s national teams. Therefore, competitions such as the Asian Champions League or domestic league competitions (premier league, elimination, etc.) are excluded from the scope of Article 13.
In addition to FIFA’s disciplinary code, regulations such as “Diversity and Prohibition of Discrimination in FIFA” approved in 2018, “FIFA Code of Ethics” approved in 2019 also mentioned the prohibition of discrimination.
In line with the women’s right to enter stadiums, the regulation of diversity and prohibition of discrimination in FIFA was approved with the aim of respecting the diversity of culture, language, religion, gender, race, skin color and other diversity among mankind. In this regulation, it is mentioned that racism and discrimination affect the entire society and football is not an exception here. In this regulation, FIFA has generally expressed the history of its actions to fight against any kind of discrimination or racism.
The first paragraph of Article 22 of the FIFA code of ethics also deals with the category of prohibition of discrimination. This paragraph stipulates: “The persons who are within the scope of this law (according to the second paragraph of the introduction of this law, the persons who are within the scope of this law are: members of the board of directors (including members of the council), members of committees, judges, Assistant referees, coaches, trainers or other persons with technical responsibility, medical or administrative staff at FIFA, confederations, members of associations or members of leagues or clubs or all other persons required to comply with FIFA regulations ( except for players and intermediaries), should not harm the dignity or integrity of a country, natural persons, or a group of people by mentioning words that are humiliating, discriminatory, or take actions that An insult to race, skin color, ethnicity, nationality, social status, gender, physical disability, language, religion, political belief, or any other belief, wealth, birth or any other status, sexual orientation or any other reason in people and Groups, be it.
Also, the third paragraph of the same article refers to the punishment for violating the provision of the first paragraph of this article: “The violation of this article will result in a proportional fine (at least 10 thousand Swiss francs) as well as a ban on any related football activity for a maximum of two years. will follow. In more severe and important cases or in the case of repetition of the aforementioned behaviors, the ban on any related football activities can be extended up to a maximum of five years.
It seems that FIFA, citing the above two regulations, as well as citing the FIFA Code of Conduct and general human rights regulations, has the right to ask all federations or members and The employees of his sub-category have no right to engage in discriminatory behavior under any circumstances and in any match or event, and in case of committing this type of behavior, they are entitled to suffer punishment and exclusion (determined by FIFA as the case may be). The seventh principle of FIFA’s ten behavioral principles (indirectly) refers to the prohibition of any discriminatory behavior. It is also mentioned in the “FIFA Code of Conduct for Third Parties” that football seeks to respect all human rights and human rights accepted at the international level and strives to realize them in any activity related to football. Also, the equality of all human beings (both men and women) in terms of dignity and rights is mentioned in the first and second articles of the Declaration of Human Rights, and any kind of discrimination between them is prohibited.
Iran Football Federation should think of a solution as soon as possible and issue the women’s right to enter stadiums in order to prevent the implementation of the punishment intended by FIFA.. A license that does not have any Shariah or legal prohibition according to the arguments that were stated before.