Stadium in Dammam opens doors to Saudi women for first time

DAMMAM: A football stadium in Dammam, Saudi Arabia will be opening its doors to women for the first time Saturday, Arab News reported.

Al-Ittifaq will be playing Al-Fateh at the Prince Mohammad bin Fahd Stadium at 6:05 p.m. Saudi time. It is the third match women have been able to attend after the lifting of a ban which previously prevented them from entering football stadiums.

The decision allowing women in stadiums was first announced on Oct. 29, a month after a historical royal decree lifting the ban on women driving.

To prepare for the change, the Kingdom has designated "family sections" in the stands for women, separated by barriers from the male-only crowd. The stadiums have also been fitted with female prayer areas, restrooms and smoking areas, as well as separate entrances and parking lots for female spectators.

The first match that women attended was the Al-Ahli versus Al-Batin game on Friday Jan. 12 in Jeddah and the second was the Al-Hilal versus Al-Ittihad match that took place on Saturday January 13 in Riyadh.