Fifa urged to overturn hijab ban

World football's governing body, Fifa, has been urged by the United Nations to permit Islamic women to wear a specially-designed hijab headscarf while playing the sport.

Wilfried Lemke, a special adviser on sport to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, wrote to Fifa president Sepp Blatter, expressing his support for the initiative put forth by the Asian Football Confederation for players to have "the right to wear a safe, Velcro-opening headscarf in FIFA-regulated matches and competitions."

AFC chief Zhang Jilong had called for the ban on headscarves to be lifted at the end of January, claiming new designs could prevent neck injuries.

Lemke said that a change in legislation "...would remove a barrier that can deter women and girls from participating in football ë...ü and would set a positive example."

He continued: "It would send the message that each female player, from the top elite level down to the grassroots, has the freedom to decide whether or not to wear this particular piece of attire while on the field."

"It would give the opportunity for remarkable female athletes to demonstrate that wearing the headscarf is not an obstacle to excelling in life and sports, and would hence contribute to challenging gender stereotypes and bringing about a change in mentalities," added Lemke.

The hijab was banned by Fifa in 2007 on the grounds of safety, but both Zhang and Lemke argue that new designs eliminate the potential risk of a serious injury.

"I have personally seen the new designs with a velcro joined at the neck which releases if the headscarf is pulled, ensuring the player's safety," said Zhang.

The International Football Association Board, football's top law-making body, is scheduled to meet on Saturday in England to discuss the proposal as part of its 126th Annual Meeting.

While Olympic sports such as rugby and taekwondo allow Muslim women to wear the headscarf in competition, soccer is opposed for safety reasons. 

Last year the Iran women's soccer team were prevented from playing their 2012 Olympic second round qualifying match against Jordan because they refused to remove their hijabs before kickoff. 

Iran, who had topped their group in the first round of Olympic qualifiers after going undefeated, were given 3-0 defeats as a penalty which abruptly ended their dreams of qualifying for the London Olympics. 

The ban will be reviewed by the International Football Association Board (IFAB) which meets in England on Saturday 

Founded in 1886, it is soccer's ultimate law-making body comprising four members from FIFA and four from the British associations. 

FIFA vice-president Prince Ali Bin Al-Hussein of Jordan will present the case for allowing players to use a Dutch-designed Velcro hijab which comes apart if pulled. 

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