Football players huddle around opponent after her hijab slips during game

A team of female football players are being praised for their kindness and compassion after halting a game to huddle around an opponent whose hijab had slipped off.

The display of sportsmanship occurred during a WAFF Women’s Club Championship match between Arab Orthodox Club and Shabab al-Ordon Club in Jordan last year.

In a video captured of the match, players from Shabab al-Ordon Club can be seen taking control of the ball from a player from the Amman Club – who suddenly stops short as her hair comes loose from her hijab.   

Members of the opposing team quickly huddled around the unnamed athlete, halting the game for almost 30 seconds, so she could fix the hair covering in privacy. 

Video of the touching moment has since gone viral, after it was shared on Twitter, where it has been watched more than 4.4m times. 

“That’s beautiful to see,” one person wrote, while another said: “This is lovely. True sportsmanship.”

Among those sharing the video was ESPN, which captioned it: “Bigger than sports.”

Author Glennon Doyle, the spouse of former US football player Abby Wambach, also shared the video, writing: “This is our mood today. When one of us needs us: We stop. We huddle up. We protect each other.”

In 2014, FIFA overturned a ban on wearing hijabs, according to The Guardian, with the first match played by women football players wearing hijabs taking place two years later in October 2016 during the Under-17 Women’s World Cup held in Amman, Jordan.