The Iranian media has reported that women were once again denied access to the football stadium to witness an international match, leaving several amounts of women with tickets outside.
Iran won 2-0 against Lebanon in a World Cup qualifier on Tuesday night at the Imam Reza Stadium in Mashhad, the northeastern city.
According to ISNA news agency, “About 2,000 Iranian women, who had bought tickets for the Iran-Lebanon match, were present in the perimeter of Imam Reza stadium, but could not enter the stadium.
“For this match, 12,500 tickets were sold, of which 2,000 were for women.”
Mashhad’s Governor, Mohsen Davari, speaking to IRIB state television about the situation said, “I apologize that many people couldn’t enter the stadium…
“Unfortunately, a large number of people outside the stadium were deprived of watching the game.”
In response to the criticism, President Ebrahim Raisi asked the interior ministry to investigate the event on Wednesday.
For the first time in nearly three years, women were permitted to attend a World Cup qualifier against Iraq in January.