EA Sports introduces Hijab in FIFA 23 for Morocco's Nouhaila Benzina

Benzina made history as the first player to wear a hijab at the 2023 Women’s World Cup in Australia/New Zealand.

The 25-year-old wore the Islamic headscarf when she featured in Morocco’s narrow 1-0 win over South Korea in the group stage.

EA Sports have since updated the game to have Benzina’s avatar wearing a hijab in FIFA 23's World Cup mode. 

Hijabs were banned by FIFA in 2007 after they were labelled as a “safety risk”, but the world’s football governing body lifted the ban in 2014.

Meanwhile, in 2022, Ghana’s first hijab-wearing female footballer, Anatu Sadat, secured a scholarship to study in the United States (US).

The young striker earned a two-year scholarship to further her education at Navarro College in the USA.

Anatu became an internet sensation in March 2021 when she became the first Ghanaian footballer to play a competitive game in a hijab.

The former Northern Ladies striker wore a hijab while playing in a Ghana Women’s Premier League game against Ampem Darkoa Ladies.

Her unprecedented act earned her praise from far and near, with both local and international media hopping on to tell her story.

"At the beginning of the season, I didn’t wear my hijab because it wasn’t available back then,” Anatu later told TV3 Ghana.

“A lot of people were commenting and talking about how beautiful I am, forgetting to mention how I performed in the game. I was happy but in a way, I wasn’t that happy.”

Anatu is part of the hijab initiative by Nordsjaelland defender Maxwell Woledzi, which is aimed at supporting Muslim girls in sports.