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The Saudi Arabia women's national football team would be the national team representing the kingdom in international football. However, the team does not yet exist because of influence of religious leaders in Saudi Arabia and systematic discrimination against women's sport, active opposition of political leaders and sport administrators. International pressure has come to bear on the country to field a women's team, and FIFA now allows the hijab to be worn in competition. A meeting at the College of Business Administration in Jeddah was seen as a possible first step in a team eventually being created. Despite a lack of official support for a national team and women's football in general, women have self-organised their own teams and play games out of the sight of men. Created in 2006, King's United women football club was the first women's football club in the country. No official data is kept regarding participation rates for women football players. ==Team== In 1985, almost no country in the world had a women's national football team including Saudi Arabia, who have not played in a FIFA-recognised match . In 2008, based on the influence of conservative religious leaders in the country, the creation of a FIFA recognised women's national team was banned by law. In June 2012 the team was not ranked in the world by FIFA and no team from the country has ever been FIFA ranked. Growing the game and having an opportunity to have a women's national team has been hindered by the systematic discrimination that all women's sport is subject to in the country. Saudi Arabia's Olympic Committee head Nawaf bin Faisal is quoted as saying that the committee should "not be endorsing any female participation at the moment". In November 2011, Ahmad Eid Al-Harbi, vice president of the Player Status Committee for the Saudi Arabian Football Federation, said of the creation of a women's national team: "Saudi society is a very conservative one, even when it comes to men’s clubs. No one can imagine his daughter playing in front of thousands of people wearing shorts, such as in soccer." Leaders in Saudi Arabian sport held a meeting in mid-2011 at the College of Business Administration in Jeddah where they discussed women's sport and possible participation of women as part of the Saudi Arabian national team at the Olympic Games. They were inspired by the example of seven other Arab nations having successfully created women's national football teams.〔 During 2012 opposition to women's participation in sport softened with the national Olympic Committee and the Saudi Embassy in London announcing that women's participation at the 2012 Summer Olympics would be permitted if they were invited. No Saudi women's national football team will be competing at the 2012 London Olympics, despite extensive pressure from the International Olympic Committee. Still, in 2012, the national federation was quietly arguing with the International Football Association Board not to allow women's participation if they were wearing the hijab while playing. The logic they followed was that if FIFA allowed women to wear the hijab in recognised matches, it would be much more difficult for the federation to prevent a national team from being created. There is a lot of pressure being put on the sporting community to allow for national representation of women on the international team as the kingdom will likely be the last nation in the world to prohibit women from competing at the Olympics.〔 If the Saudis can successfully argue the hijab cannot be worn in competition, it would make them less isolated internationally as other teams in the Arab world would be less likely to compete in the upcoming FIFA Women's Under-17 World Cup.〔 ''PRI's The World'' said in late 2011: "Who knows. In 10 years Saudi Arabia might just have a formidable national women's soccer team."〔 A current female football player in the country said of the situation as it pertains to the national team: "Our generation started the game, the leagues, the structure. The next generation will have it on a silver platter. We may not get to play for a national team but we're laying the groundwork."〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Saudi Arabia women's national football team」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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