FIFA makes a rare exception to allow the Afghan women’s refugee team to play as an official national team without Taliban approval International Sports News –

The Afghanistan women’s national football team, which was forced into exile after the Taliban returned to power in 2021, has been given a formal path back to international competition following a major rule change approved by FIFA’s governing body. At its meeting in Vancouver, the FIFA Council agreed to amend its regulations to recognize the refugee team operating under the name United Afghan Women, allowing it to compete in official international matches without needing the approval of the Taliban-controlled Afghanistan Football Federation. This decision represents the first time that exiled players are allowed to represent Afghanistan in competitions sanctioned by FIFA, despite their country’s authorities continuing to ban women’s sports.

A national team displaced by political change

Established in 2007, the modern Afghan women’s national team was created with the participation of former captain and activist Khaleda Popal and with the support of the Afghanistan National Olympic Committee. For more than a decade, the team has operated within the international football system, with its last official match coming in 2018. This structure collapsed in 2021 when the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan and imposed sweeping restrictions on women and girls, including a ban on participation in sports.

The women’s national team was effectively disbanded, and many players fled the country for fear of persecution. In the months that followed, FIFA helped evacuate more than 160 at-risk athletes, officials and human rights defenders associated with football and basketball, spreading players across Australia, Europe, the United States and parts of the Middle East.

Years of pressure lead to organizational transformation

For more than three years, players, activists and human rights groups have lobbied FIFA to officially recognize a team in exile, arguing that athletes should not lose their international careers due to restrictions imposed by the system they no longer live in.

This pressure led to the formation of the United Afghan Women in 2021, a team made up of refugee players.The initiative became part of a broader FIFA strategy to support Afghan women’s football, combining diplomatic engagement with financial support and organized playing opportunities. The rule change builds on FIFA’s Strategy for Action for Afghan Women’s Football, approved by the FIFA Council in May last year, and follows the establishment of United Afghan Women, a FIFA-backed team that provides organized playing opportunities for Afghan female footballers living outside the country. The first tangible step towards recognition came in October 2025, when the team participated in a tournament in Morocco alongside Chad, Libya and Tunisia. The event itself was moved from the United Arab Emirates after visa issues prevented the team from travelling, highlighting the logistical challenges players still face.

FIFA has also organized selection camps in England and Australia as part of an ongoing process of building a competitive team, with individual support packages provided to approximately 90 players.

The wider group includes more than 80 footballers living in exile across multiple continents.

What the rule change actually allows

Until now, FIFA regulations required that any national team be officially recognized by the local football association. In the case of Afghanistan, this meant approval from the federation, which operates under the authority of the Taliban, and which does not recognize women’s football. The rule change removes this requirement in specific circumstances, allowing the refugee team to compete independently when the national federation is unable or unwilling to register the women’s side.

As a result, the Afghan Women’s Federation can now enter official competitions as a representative team for Afghanistan without obtaining approval from the country’s governing body. FIFA President Gianni Infantino said in a statement: “We are proud of the beautiful journey that United Afghan Women has begun, and through this initiative, we aim to enable them, as well as other FIFA member associations that may not be able to register a national or representative team for a FIFA competition, to take the next step, in coordination with the relevant continental association.”

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What comes next for the team

The timing of the decision means that the team will not be able to qualify for the 2027 Women’s World Cup in Brazil, as that process is already underway. However, it opens the door to participating in the qualifiers for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. In the short term, United Afghan Women are expected to return to action during the June international transfer window, with scheduled exhibition matches against opponents yet to be confirmed. The team is currently being finalized through ongoing selection stages, drawing on players who have continued to train and compete in various countries despite the lack of a formal national structure.

Its broader importance goes beyond football

The decision reflects a shift in the way FIFA deals with national representation in exceptional circumstances. By allowing a team to compete without recognition from its home federation, the organization effectively acknowledged that political realities could prevent athletes from participating through traditional structures. For the players themselves, this ruling is the result of sustained advocacy and perseverance over several years. It restores a path to international football that has been closed since 2021, and does so without having to compromise with a system that excludes them. More broadly, it sets a precedent for how governing bodies respond when athletes are displaced by conflict or political change, ensuring that participation at an international level is not entirely dependent on circumstances within a single country. For Afghan women united, it means something more urgent: the chance to represent their country again, even from beyond its borders.