The 350 girls in the Islamic Soccer League are not afraid of a little rough stuff on Toronto’s east-end pitches, logging trophy wounds and earning bragging rights playing the game they love.
But not one girl has been on the DL because of hijab injury – despite insistence by FIFA, soccer’s international governing body, that headscarves are a danger to Islamic women who want to bend it like Beckham.
“We’ve never had an incident where hijab was an issue,” says Majied Ali, president of the 1,600-member ISL, whose female players – aged 5 to 18 –play with or without hijab. He estimates about 75 per cent of the girls wear it.
“Most of our girls tie hijab round their heads, not around their necks, somewhat similar to how a bandana is tied. Some other girls have invested in the Velcro-type of (tear-away) hijab.” » | Mary Ormsby | Feature Writer | Saturday, March 03, 2012
