Women are going to be banned from sitting in the stadium to watch the match. This has been said in many media reports of Iran. The Iranian FA has ordered sanctions to be imposed in the north-western city of Tabriz in the wake of repulsive incidents at a home match of local top club Tractor-Sazi, reports said. However, it is unclear whether the stadium restrictions apply only to Tabriz or to all matches. Tractor-Sazi is one of the most popular clubs in Iran, which has a large fan group including women. Observers believe the decision was due to a woman taking the field in a match last week.

In fact, during the Pro League match between Tehran club Esteghlal and Aluminum Arak, a woman ran onto the field and hugged Esteghlal and national team goalkeeper Hossein Hosseini. For this, Hossein was fined approximately $7,500 and was reportedly suspended for one match. In Iran, it is forbidden to touch women who are not part of the immediate family.

According to an ultra-conservative cleric in Iran, women have no place in stadiums filled with ardent male supporters. FIFA, the global governing body, exerted pressure to have the ban somewhat loosened in recent years. Additionally, only a specific amount of women were permitted to take part in the matches.