Monika Staab taking on new project in Saudi Arabia

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Berlin, August 17: Monika Staab's sense of anticipation is written all over her face – it's crystal clear that once again she is completely committed to a new, exciting project. As of September 1, she will be the first-ever coach of Saudi Arabia's women's national football team – in a country that only recently changed legislation to allow women to drive cars, attend sporting events in stadiums and play football.

"I'm very excited and looking forward to it," Staab tells DW.

It was only last November that a women's football league was launched in the Islamic kingdom.

"I was delighted and surprised when I heard that Saudi Arabia was allowing women to play football," Staab says. "It was an historic moment."

It wasn't long before she received a call from Saudi Arabia asking if she would consider taking on what would be a daunting task.

"I spoke with the people from the federation, I later met with them in person, and I gained the impression that they were taking it all very seriously. I asked them what would be allowed and what wouldn't be," she says.

International experience

Part of Staab's job will involve building women's footballing structures from the grassroots up. It's a pioneering role, but that's something she knows a lot about.

"It's not just about the national team getting good results," she says. "The people in charge know that they have to have a strategy, a plan. My discussions with the Saudi Arabian federation left me with the impression that they are serious about this. They have done their homework."

Staab's career as a player took her to France and England before returning to Germany and the women's Bundesliga. She then moved on to coaching, working for the German Football Association (DFB) and the world governing body FIFA.

Always up for an adventure, Staab's work has taken her to more than 80 countries over the past four decades, including Pakistan, Iran, Bahrain and Qatar – meaning she already has a wealth of experience working in Muslim-majority countries.

"I will not only be responsible for the (Saudi) national team," Staab stresses. "I'll also be training female coaches... I want to leave a sustainable legacy there. Things should continue for tick over long after I have left."

Winning over the skeptics

Staab sees a big part of her job as being about getting girls in Saudi Arabia interested in the sport and creating opportunities for them to start training at as early an age as possible.

"It will take us five years to build up the structures, this can't be done overnight. As we do so, we must ensure that our strategy gains accepted in the society, with all that goes with its mentality and norms. I am well aware of the fact that this is a very sensitive issue to deal with.

"There are people who say that women who play football can't get pregnant or suffer damage from it."

Staab also notes that it wasn't that long ago that women faced similar attitudes back home.

"Fifty years ago, women weren't allowed to play in Germany either. But women just want to have fun playing football. We need to communicate this and convince them that it is completely safe. This also brings a society together," Staab says.

She is looking forward to embarking on her new project without any hesitancy – in part because of her wide range of experiences.

"I'm not afraid. I've been to so many countries where there were dangers. I want to do my job," Staab says. "If I was afraid, I wouldn't be able to do the job."

As she embarks on her new project, Staab has one main wish: "I want there to be women's football in Saudi Arabia, even though it's an Arab country. Even though football is very male dominated. The federation wants to make a difference there, and I want to help."

Source: DW