Saudi sports bosses are clamping down on hairstyles seen as un-Islamic
This is the moment a footballer in Saudi Arabia was ordered to have a haircut moments before kick off – as part of the kingdom’s crackdown on players with ‘anti-Islamic’ hairstyles.
Waleed Abdullah, a goalkeeper for Al Shabab and Saudi Arabia’s national team, was just about to join his team mates when match officials intervened.

Pictures captured the moment a footballer in Saudi Arabia was ordered to have a haircut by the side of the pitch

Footage shows players and club officials reacting with disbelief as the player’s small mohawk was removed with scissors. Pictures captured the moment the Sadi national team goalkeeper was ordered to have a haircut by the side of the pitch.

The impromptu haircut was part of the kingdom’s crackdown on players with ‘anti-Islamic’ hairstyles
It comes as Saudi sports authorities stepped up their action against footballer hairstyles deemed to be un-Islamic in the ultra-conservative kingdom

Footage shows players and club officials reacting with disbelief as the player’s small mohawk was removed with scissors

The impromptu haircut was part of the kingdom’s crackdown on players with ‘anti-Islamic’ hairstyles   It comes as Saudi sports authorities stepped up their action against footballer hairstyles deemed to be un-Islamic in the ultra-conservative kingdomIt comes as Saudi sports authorities stepped up their action against footballer hairstyles deemed to be un-Islamic in the ultra-conservative kingdom, local media reported.Video posted online showed Abdullah player being given a last-minute haircut before a fixture to comply with Saudi Football Federation guidelines.The head of the kingdom’s youth organisation had earlier asked its sport federations and Olympic committee to ‘ban the qazaa phenomenon’, using an Arabic name for eccentric styles often sported by footballers, the website Arriyadiyah reported.
Footage shows players and club officials reacting with disbelief as the player’s small mohawk was removed with scissors

Footage shows players and club officials reacting with disbelief as the player’s small mohawk was removed with scissors

Video posted online showed Abdullah player being given a last-minute haircut before a fixture to comply with Saudi Football Federation guidelines

Fellow players looked bewildered as the footballer was being given a haircut by the side of the pitch

Waleed Abdullah is pictured in action during an International Friendly match between Saudi Arabia and Australia in 2014

Such haircuts are against Islam and Saudi traditions, one commentator wrote in the newspaper Al-Jazirah on Friday.
The article urged the football federation to ‘impose sanctions’ on offending players whose ‘bizarre haircuts are imitated by their fans in schools’.
Saudi Arabia, where many foreign professional footballers play for local teams, applies a rigorous doctrine of Islam known as Wahhabism.

Lets us know what you think of this article. Like? Dislike? Funny? Interesting? Cool?  Drop us a line in the comment box or join us on facebook and twitter to help us give you a better reading experience