Ahead of the tournament, FIFA announced that the team would remove the word “refugee” from its name and change its name to Afghanistan Women’s United.
Published October 23, 2025
The FIFA-sponsored tournament featuring the Afghan women’s refugee team has been moved from the United Arab Emirates to Morocco, with a four-team friendly starting on Sunday, international soccer’s governing body announced.
The FIFA Unites: Women’s Series tournament was originally scheduled to be held in Dubai from October 23 to 29, and will also include the women’s national teams of the UAE, Chad and Libya.
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The creation of the Afghanistan Women’s Refugee Team stemmed from the Taliban’s occupation of Afghanistan in 2021, when the Taliban banned women’s sports and athletes fled the country fearing persecution.
“FIFA would like to thank the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FMRF) and looks forward to working together to organize a successful tournament,” FIFA said in a statement.
The governing body also confirmed that, following consultation with FIFA, the Afghanistan Women’s Refugee Team has chosen a new official name: Afghanistan Women United.
Before the Taliban takeover, Afghanistan had 25 contracted female players, most of whom now live in Australia. The Afghanistan men’s team will continue its activities as usual.
