Iranian women allowed to watch World Cup after sit-in protest

Iran played Spain in the World Cup last night, and excitement was high in Tehran, where the game was to be broadcast live in the capital’s Azadi Stadium.

For 40 years, women have been unable to watch the national side in person, due to a ban on female spectators at male sporting events.

This led to the unusual sight of female Iran fans crowding the stands in Russia to cheer on the team during their opening match against Morocco on Friday, while their sisters at home remain locked out of the country’s own stadiums.

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On Tuesday the governor of Tehran announced that the prohibition on mixed-gender stadiums would be temporarily lifted to allow female fans to a live broadcast of the Iran-Spain match in a designated “family” stand.

However, hours before kick-off, the capital’s police said the plans to allow a mixed-gender viewing could not go ahead, citing “infrastructure” issues.

Ticket-holders refused to leave, staging an impromptu sit-in protest outside the stadium.

Video footage shows men, women and children sitting on the ground in front of a line of police. Many fans carried banners and horns, while some female supporters wore a patriotic Iranian flag headscarf.

The stand-off continued more than an hour, until Iran’s interior minister intervened to order police to allow all fans inside and let the viewing party go ahead as planned.

“It marked the first time since 1981 that women were allowed in Azadi Stadium to watch a soccer game with men,” Sports Illustrated reports.

Unfortunately, that was the only victory of the night - despite giving the Spanish side a run for their money, Iran ultimately lost the match 1-0.

“It remains to be seen whether Wednesday's event signals a permanent shift in allowing Iranian women to watch men's sporting events,” says CNN.