Saudi Arabia to allow women into sports stadiums

About a month after Saudi Arabia granted women the right to drive, the kingdom has announced another historic move: Starting next year, women will be allowed to attend sporting events in stadiums for the first time.

Saudi Arabia’s General Sports Authority made the announcement Sunday, announcing that preparations will begin to “accommodate families” in three stadiums in the major cities of Riyadh, Jiddah and Dammam. Two of the stadiums, the King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh and the King Abdullah Sports City in Jiddah, hold the highest seating capacity in the kingdom.

“Sports stadiums in Saudi Arabia to open their doors to welcome women in 2018,” Princess Reema Bandar bint Al-Saud, the vice president for women’s affairs of the General Sports Authority, wrote on Twitter. 

It is unclear exactly how the stadiums will regulate where women and children will sit in relation to men, and whether the decision will apply to single women in addition to women with families. In many public places where women are allowed — such as public buses, parks, beaches and amusement parks — they are segregated.

The landmark decision follows last month’s historic decree that women would finally be granted Saudi driver’s licenses for the first time in June 2018.

The move ends one of the country’s most widely criticized and visible restrictions on human rights. It also comes amid a number of reforms put forth by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the heir apparent to the Saudi throne, and outlined in his “vision for 2030″ plan. He has said that the government aims to boost female participation in the workforce from 22 percent to 30 percent by 2030.

Last month, hundreds of women were permitted to enter the King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh to participate in the kingdom’s National Day celebrations for the first time. Although they had to sit in a specific section for families, they were able to enjoy fireworks, light shows and a concert in honor of the 87th anniversary of the kingdom’s founding. 

The decision to open the stadium’s doors to women prompted a backlash from Saudi conservatives on social media.

The criticism has not stopped leaders like the princess from championing rights for women in sports and recreation. This month, she became the first woman to be appointed president of the Saudi Federation for Community Sports, which manages sports-related activities for men and women.

The princess, who was raised in the United States when her father was the ambassador and graduated from George Washington University, has pushed to license women’s-only gyms and sports clubs, and many expect that her efforts will draw more women into athletic facilities. 

Women are not allowed to exercise with men, and many Muslim clerics consider it immodest for women to participate in sports. The kingdom did not send any women to the Olympics until 2012. In July, Saudi Arabia’s Education Ministry announced that for the first time, it would begin offering physical education classes for girls in public schools.