The Afghan women’s refugee team played their first match in a four-team FIFA friendly in Morocco.
Published October 27, 2025
Afghanistan’s women’s refugee team lost 6-1 to Chad in a FIFA-sponsored tournament in Morocco on Sunday, but for the players, the game itself was a victory as they were denied the opportunity to play the sport they love in their homeland.
Women’s sports have been banned in Afghanistan since the Taliban took power in 2021, and athletes have fled the country fearing persecution.
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Before the Taliban takeover, Afghanistan had 25 contracted female players, most of whom now live in Australia.
The women’s national team last played an international match in 2021, losing 5-0 to Qatar, but in May, world soccer’s governing body approved the creation of an Afghan women’s refugee team and appointed Pauline Hamill as coach.
The team chose “Afghanistan Women United” as their official name after consultation with FIFA before losing to Chad in the first game of the four-team FIFA Unites Women’s Series tournament, which also included Tunisia and Libya.
Captain Fatima Haidari said ahead of the match: “After all these years of trying to get what we truly deserve as women, that’s all we’ve ever wanted: the right to play and the right to represent our country.”
“We are deeply grateful to FIFA for giving us this opportunity and privilege to represent women’s capabilities.”
First match in 4 years
Afghanistan Women’s United took the lead on Sunday with a penalty from Melbourne-based striker Manosh Nouri, sparking wild celebrations among teammates and on the sidelines.
But Chad, who played his first race in 2019 and competed in the 2020 and 2024 Olympic qualifiers, quickly recovered and recorded an easy victory in Berecid, 40 kilometers from Casablanca.
Afghanistan Women United’s next match will be against Tunisia on Wednesday and Libya on Saturday.
The tournament was originally scheduled to be held in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), but was moved to Morocco last week after Afghan delegates were denied entry to the Gulf country.
