FIFA Ruling Must Include Women Football in Iran

Dear Mr Joseph S. Blatter

FIFA's decision to ban the Islamic Republic's football teams from international games is a brilliant decision and should have come about a long time ago. The ban is because of the interferences that the Iranian Football Federation is experiencing from the regime. The main reasons for FIFA's ban are that the regime is interfering with the decision -making and appointments of the leadership of the football association, which is supposed to be an independent entity in order to maintain the non-political status of the International Football Association. However, you must be aware the interference of the regime does not end with the decision-making and appointments of the association's leadership: the regime interferes with almost every aspect of the football and all other sports in Iran. The regime appoints an observer for not only the football association but also all the football clubs and other sport clubs to ensure the imposition of the arbitrary Islamic codes and ethics, which often hinder the exercising and competitiveness of the sport. For example, Iranian women football players have to cover the whole of their bodies in order to be able to play. This is not only degrading to our women but also it hinders and affects their competitiveness and efficiency of their game. It affects them psychologically too as it gives them a sense of inferiority. On this basis, the game is unfair before it starts. It also makes the competition unfair in the way that if the temperature is high the team with less clothing have the advantage. FIFA must ensure fair play and if the Islamic regime carries on imposing degrading Islamic codes on our women football players then the ban should continue until the regime complies with the international standards that govern all members and participating teams. The imposition of arbitrary Islamic codes on our men football players affects their game, more or less, in the same way too.

Therefore, we undersigned would like you to make the FIFA's stance clear to the Islamic regime that If they want to participate in the international arenas, they must abide by the uniformity of the international standards that govern all members - standards that ensures fair play not only physically, but also mentally and psychologically. International Football will only be fair if both teams are on equal footing. Iranian football player whether male or female are not on equal footing because of the censorship and imposition of Islamic Codes that are not necessarily Islamic but only a version interpreted by present rulers in Iran.

We, undersigned, support FIFA to end all interferences from the regime and to bring Iranian football on to an equal footing in the International football arena.