- For the first time, women in Saudi Arabia entered a sports stadium to watch a soccer match between two local teams in Jeddah.
- Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman(32), has been hailed as the face of these changes
- Women in black abayas and fluorescent orange vests stood at the gates at King Abdullah Stadium, welcoming people into the family section that, for the first time in Saudi Arabia, allowed women to attend a men's soccer match.
- As the two teams al-Ahli and al-Batin faced each other in the city of Jeddah, women showed up to their first public sporting event in the Kingdom to support the sides with their spouses, children and friends.
- The decision to allow women to attend a mixed public sporting event is one of many changes the country has undergone in recent months, hailed as proof of a new progressive trend in the deeply conservative Muslim Kingdom.
Where will they sit for the football?
Women will view the games from stands in sections of each stadium with specially allocated seating for females and family.
This means that women attending the events will probably sit with children in segregated areas away from the men.
These sections have been made available specifically for women who are not accompanied by a male family member.
Other areas within the venues, such as cafes and restaurants, have also been adapted to provide separate seating arrangements.
While
out in public and at these events, the women must wear loose-fitting,
full-length robes known as "abayas", as well as a headscarf if they are
Muslim.
Note
There are many things that Saudi women are still unable to do without permission from the men in their lives, including:
- Apply for passports
- Travel abroad
- Get married
- Open a bank account
- Start certain businesses
- Get elective surgery
- Leave prison
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