Saudi Arabia launches its first women’s soccer league behind closed doors

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  • The Saudi sports authorities create a championship with 16 teams and give impetus to the women’s national team that plays its first friendly next February

  • The first game has been played without a press, accusing criticism of the regime of using sport as a front to cover up its poor human rights record and its abuses of women.

The feet of Farah Jafri | they were born to be glued to the ball. This young Saudi woman used any occasion to take it and amaze everyone around her. At schoolyard with his companions or in the street with anyone who ventured. From home, he glued his eyes to the ball that others dominated and dared to dream that one day it would be his feet that would slide across the green grass. Now 18, Jafri is one of the 30 players selected among 400 candidates to be part of the Saudi Arabia women’s national team. Now, Farah Jafri’s feet are part of History.

“At the beginning of my soccer journey, I faced some difficulties because not all people accepted it & rdquor ;, the young woman tells AFP. While training, Jafri confesses that he fantasizes about turning professional and playing in the British first division. “I dream of the day when I can represent my country in the World Cup feminine “, reveals. The desire of many young women like Jafri is closer than ever to becoming a reality. Saudi Arabia launched its women’s first soccer league in the country.

The step is part of the “support program of the Saudi Arabia Football Federation (SAFF) to women’s football since 2017& rdquor ;, announced the Official Press Agency of Saudi Arabia (SPA). Lamia Bahaian, SAFF’s female director, has described it as “an ambitious strategy in which we all share passion, ambition and determination to advance women’s football and reach the highest levels & rdquor ;. To achieve this, three training centers for girls between the ages of 13 and 17 have been established throughout the country and it is expected that by 2025 there will be nine.

Although these athletes have often had to keep your passion hidden. Those who are already part of clubs created by their own efforts train despite the difficulties that surround them. All of these players work or study and none of them are paid to play. Some have to driving for more than two hours to get to training and two others on the way home. New training opportunities will allow young women to start their preparation early and have more options for training. make a career in soccer, either inside or outside of Saudi Arabia.

16 teams

In this new league, 16 teams will participate and the matches will be played in three cities: Riyadh, Dammam and Jeddah, on the shores of the Red Sea. Regional tournaments will be held, with six teams in Riyadh and Jeddah, and another four in Dammam. The top three from the Riyadh and Jeddah leagues and the top two from Dammam will go to the group stage which will be played as a knockout tournament early next year in the coastal city. For now, the authorities have not announced any sportswear restriction for female players, who in the past faced scrutiny from religious police enforcing a strict dress code.

Also the Saudi sports institutions seek to develop a strong women’s national team competing in international tournaments. To achieve this, they have signed the German as a coach Monika Staab, who in 2002 won the UEFA Women’s Cup at the helm of Eintracht Frankfurt. After directing the national women’s teams of Bahrain and Qatar, Staab has been optimistic. “Five or eight years from now, they could be number one in the Gulf and that would be a great achievement,” he said. The team prepares for its first friendly in February, prelude to another three international matches that he will play in order to generate a FIFA ranking.

Sportswashing de MBS

But the opacity The launch of this celebrated league has dampened hope for real change for Saudi women. The first game was played in Riyadh but few have seen it. There has not been nor presence of television cameras nor journalists. The stands could only be accessed by invitation, and the event was not widely publicized. “End of the match: Al Seham al Zarqá and Etihad Al Riyad tie 1-1 and share the points & rdquor ;, that has been all the information shared about the first match of the Saudi Arabian women’s soccer league.

This secrecy to which he has submitted to the meetings confirms the accusations of sportswashing to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. It is not the first time that the ruler of Saudi Arabia use sporting events or the sport itself to try to clean up its public image tainted by the poor human rights record in the country. With the presence of female activists still behind bars, a few soccer games cannot disguise the ultraconservatism patriarchal of the Muslim nation. The dreams of the youngest girls will only end up reflected on the television screen if nobody shows them, now, Jafri’s feet slide on the grass.

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Reference-www.elperiodico.com

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