Afghanistan women’s national team set to return to competitive football after fleeing country

The Afghanistan women’s national team has returned to competitive football after being accepted into the Football Victoria structure.

The news is a revelation update after the team were among those fearing for their lives after the Taliban seized control of the country last year.

In August 2021, a group of 77 Afghan athletes and family members, including national team players, were granted Australian visas and fled Kabul.

The evacuation was made possible thanks to the efforts of global players’ union FIFPRO, non-government organisations, human rights campaigners, and the Australian government.

“These young women, both as athletes and activists, have been in a position of danger and on behalf of their peers around the world we thank the international community for coming to their aid,” FIFPRO said in a statement following the evacuation.

Now, the team is ready to compete and will become part of the FV structure for the coming season.

Since their arrival in the country, Afghanistan have stayed together and have received support from A-League club Melbourne Victory. They have had the backing of former captain Khalida Popal, who said the Afghanistan women’s team was “built to fight Taliban ideology.”

Popal helped Afghanistan’s youth development team safely leave the country and fly to the UK in November. The successful evacuation was supported by media personality and businesswoman Kim Kardashian, who had made a donation to help fund the flight.

Since arriving in Australia, the Afghan internationals have trained under the guidance of FV National Training Centre coach Helen Winterburn to determine the side’s standard while talks are held over which of FV’s seven tiers will be most fitting.

Regardless of which league they