“With regard to the participation of French national teams in international competitions on the one hand, as well as the organization of national competitions on the other hand, the French Football Federation recalls its concern to respect the constitutional and legislative principles of secularism which prevail in our country and which appear in its statutes.” In February 2022, the French Football Federation (FFF), going against the current of Fifa which had authorized it, reaffirmed the prohibition for young women to play while wearing the hijab, relying in particular on the “principle of neutrality” erected as a rule in sport and drawing its source from the French law of 1905 on secularism.

This same law on which Maître Marion Ogier is based, who represents the collective of Hijabeuses who filed a request in November 2021 before the Council of State in order to obtain the right to wear a hijab while practicing football. “The FFF does not have the power to absolutely submit these users to a principle of neutrality”, argued the lawyer to the newspaper L’Equipe. “We are just asking that she stop demanding an obligation of neutrality which is beyond her remit. The only notch which exists, it is the law of March 2004, when the legislator made obligation of discretion for the pupils of public establishments. Apart from that, the principle is freedom. At the same time, the Minister Delegate for Gender Equality, Elisabeth Moreno, had dropped on LCI: “The law says that these young girls can wear the veil and play football. On the football fields today, it is not forbidden to wear the veil. I want the law to be obeyed.” Before adding: “If they want to play football while veiled, how is it impossible?”

Obviously, this file, considered to be very sensitive, goes far beyond the simple framework of the round ball and could extend to all the other sports disciplines. And even get out of the simple sporting framework. Thus, the FFF will be supported by a certain Frédéric Thiriez, former president of the Professional Football League (LFP) and lawyer at the Council of State, who will plead on behalf of the League of International Women’s Law (LDIF) . According to its president, the socialist Annie Sugier, “the Islamic veil is assimilated to a sexual apartheid. A physical separation, both concrete and symbolic, between men and women. It is the promotion of a model of society where the woman is on parole: she can be in the public space, as long as she is covered. In contrast, Founé Diawara, the co-president of Les Hijabeuses, said: “What motivates our action is injustice. It’s not just a question of Muslim women’s rights, but of women’s rights.

In other words, two visions of feminism will oppose before the Council of State which, in 90% of cases, follows the recommendations of the public rapporteur who will therefore present his conclusions this Monday. Then, the magistrates composing the supreme administrative court will put their decision under advisement, it will then be known within a period of two weeks. With all the consequences, in one direction or the other, that this will take.