Teen Soccer Ref in Quebec Fired over Hijab

The Quebec Soccer Federation stands by a FIFA ruling against religious garb on the field.

A 15-year-old soccer referee from Quebec has been fired from her job because she wears a hijab. Sarah Benkirane, from the Montreal area, was told that wearing a hijab violates FIFA's Rule 4, which prohibits any religious symbols in team uniforms. This isn't the first time hijabs in soccer have caused a stir in Quebec. Four years ago, Ashmahan Mansour, a teenaged soccer player from Ottawa, was banned from a tournament in Laval, Que., over her headdress, which prompted her team and four others to quit the tournament in protest. And, just this month, FIFA barred the Iranian women's team from playing a 2012 Olympic qualifier game because of their headscarves.