Fifa has granted permission for Afghan Women United, a team of refugees scattered across Australia, the Middle East and Europe, to represent Afghanistan in official competitions without requiring approval from the Taliban. The regulation change, expected to be approved by the Fifa Council today, allows the squad to compete as the official Afghanistan national team for the first time, against the wishes of the country's government.
Under previous rules, Fifa required the team to receive recognition from the Taliban-controlled Afghanistan Football Federation, which refuses to acknowledge a women's football team due to the Taliban's ban on women's sports. For more than three years, the players and their supporters campaigned for Fifa to intervene and provide official recognition and financial support.
Afghan Women United was formed after the Taliban returned to power in 2021, when the original women's national team—established in 2007—was banned, and most of its players sought asylum. The new team is part of a three-pillar strategy by Fifa to support women and girls in Afghanistan, including diplomatic efforts to advocate for women's right to sport and providing playing opportunities.
Fifa has organised fixtures for the team, including the inaugural Fifa Unites: Women's Series in the United Arab Emirates last year, though players were denied visas, forcing the tournament to move to Morocco. Captain Fatima Haidari, based in Italy, said: 'When I step on to the pitch everything else is automatically erased from my mind. I train, I play, and a fire inside me is lit, not just because of the power that I feel at that moment as a player, but because I feel I have many other girls with me.'
