The Open Stadiums movement in
Iran is hoping its work to improve women’s rights in Iran will mean the death of Sahar Khodayari, nicknamed Blue Girl, will not be in vain.
On September 9, Iranian football fan Sahar Khodayari, nicknamed Blue Girl, died in hospital after setting herself on
fire outside a court in Tehran. She had been charged with “appearing in public without a hijab” after trying to enter Azadi Stadium dressed as a man, flouting the nation’s infamous ban on women in sports stadiums.
In an airport transit lounge thousands of kilometres away, as news began to spread of Khodayari’s death, a
smartphone began to ping. And ping. And ping.