The head of FIFA, Sepp Blatter, has spoken out against banning women from sports stadiums, urging Iran to end the prohibition of women from entering sports venues.

In FIFA’s weekly magazine, Blatter says that when he travelled to Iran in November 2013, he encountered the ban on the presence of women in sports stadiums.

He adds that he asked the Iranian president to put an end to this policy but so far has seen no result. Blatter stressed that the situation cannot continue and the doors of stadiums must be opened up to female spectators.

Iran is vying to host the Asian Football Cup games in 2019 along with UAE, and it is said that the restrictions on women’s presence in stadiums significantly reduce Iran’s chance of winning this bid.

Blatter also criticized the absence of Iranian women on the FIFA Executive Committee.

Radio Zamaneh