The female football fan causing 'moral uproar' in Saudi Arabia – video

A video of a Saudi woman at a football match in the United Arab Emirates has caused a "moral uproar" in Saudi Arabia.

Women are banned from attending football matches in the conservative Muslim nation because their presence is said to promote "immoral and sinful behaviour". This forces many women to travel to other Gulf states where rules are more relaxed in order to watch football and other sporting events.

In the short clip, a fully veiled woman wearing a black abaya and niqab is seen shouting at her team after a bad tackle. While shaking her fist in anger, her sleeve falls to expose much of her lower arm.

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The clip has been viewed almost half a million times and the majority of the comments have been made by "angry men critical of the unidentified woman for being in a stadium filled with thousands of men", reports the BBC's Mai Noman.

"Does this woman not have a man? Her place is in the house," reads one comment underneath the video.

Another one says: "As a man I do not want to get married to a woman who, surrounded by men, shouts at stadiums."

Despite the reaction, some argue that attitudes towards women and sport are changing in Saudi Arabia.

Lina Al Maena, a former athlete and advocate for girls' sports in Saudi Arabia told the BBC: "There's a lot more acceptance of women's involvement in sports today than there used to be a decade ago."

Indeed, not all of the YouTube comments left by Saudi Arabian men were critical.

According to local reports, Saudi sporting officials are considering allowing women to enter stadiums, but only if they follow strict guidelines, including not mingling with men.