Women disguised as men sneak into Iranian football match

A photo of five women posing as men at an Iranian football game has gone viral.

The incredible shot captured the women in disguise inside Azadi Stadium in Tehran watching on as their team Persepolis were crowned champions of Iran's professional football league — known as the Persian Gulf Pro League — in a 3-0 victory over Sepidrood Rasht.

The photo has gone viral because the women attended the match in the face of the country's strict decree which bans women from all sporting events inside the Islamic republic.

In 2014, Iranian-British woman Ghoncheh Ghavami was dramatically charged with propaganda against the state and spent more than five months in prison after being arrested trying to attend a World League volleyball match.

The brazen five women at the Persepolis game also made their decision to attend the match less than three weeks after 35 women were arrested for trying to attend the Tehran football derby between Persepolis and Esteghlal at the 95,000-capacity Azadi Stadium.

5 girls sneak in Azadi Stadium in disguise to celebrate Persepolis championship in Iran's Persian Gulf Pro League pic.twitter.com/7VgUi4aQmA

— Sobhan Hassanvand 📰 سبحان حسنوند (@Hassanvand) April 28, 2018

VIDEO: Iranian girls who sneaked in Azadi Stadium in disguise cheer their team

via: @MahboobKhansari pic.twitter.com/ir1DgNeHMC

— Sobhan Hassanvand 📰 سبحان حسنوند (@Hassanvand) April 28, 2018

According to reports the women snuck inside the Stadium to watch their team's trophy presentation and had no issues sneaking past security while wearing fake beards, wigs and male clothing.

The women were able to watch their team collect gold medals and celebrate the team's 11th domestic title.

Sky Sports reports the 35 women arrested earlier this month for trying to do the same thing were later released.

They were prevented from entering the ground and held by the authorities because Iranian women are not allowed to watch men's football matches in Iran.

The group was spotted even though some of them were dressed as men.

Their attempt earlier this month coincided with FFA boss president Gianni Infantino's visit to the country.

Wish one day soon they can enter stadiums with their own identity,
Zahra in Persepolis last season match pic.twitter.com/ZgOT5lF0Sb

— OpenStadiums (@openStadiums) April 29, 2018

The FIFA boss has been criticised for attending the 'men-only' game.

He was on a two-day visit to the country to take part in a ceremony to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Iran's football federation.

Instead he was forced to defend FIFA's decision not to expel Iran from the federation as a result of their poor human rights record.

Infantino said Iranian President Hassan Rohani informed him during the visit that the country planned to allow women to attend sporting events soon.

"I was promised that women in Iran will have access to football stadiums soon," Infantino said.

"He told me that in countries such as (Iran), these things take a bit of time.

"I heard there were some incidents where some women were detained because they wanted to attend a football match and there was some criticism, obviously and rightly," he said.

"There are two ways to deal with this matter — either we criticise, we sanction, we condemn, we don't speak and we cut relations. Or we go there and have a discussion and try to convince the leaders of the country that they should give (women) access to stadiums. I went for the second option."
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