JAMES NALTON celebrates Ruben Blades’s song Patria – played before Panama’s game against Ghana — a song inspiring hope instead of hate
Latest editorial
Fifa call on Iran to allow women to attend World Cup qualifiers
Fifty years ago this month, Britain faced its hottest summer on record, as welterweight champion Stracey met his match in Mexico’s Palomino, writes JOHN WIGHT.
Including races at Newcastle, York and Chester
FIFA President Gianni Infantino has demanded Iran provide assurances women will be allowed to attend 2022 World Cup qualifiers after expressing disappointment the country has reneged on its commitments to open up stadiums.
Infantino faced criticism for attending a Tehran derby in March 2018 where women were shut out of the stadium. But when he returned to the Iranian capital in November for the Asian Champions League final, hundreds of Iranian women were allowed to watch Persepolis play Kashima Antlers of Japan.
“I was able to witness real and tangible progress with regard to genuine participation of women in football,” Infantino wrote this week to Iranian soccer federation president Mehdi Taj in a letter obtained by the media.
Similar stories
ROGER McKENZIE explains why he can’t support this year’s World Cup
