Wed Mar 26 14:17:54 UTC 2025: ## UN Urges FIFA to Reinstate Afghan Women’s Football Team

**Geneva/Kabul** – The UN special rapporteur on Afghanistan is calling on FIFA to take a strong stance against the Taliban’s ban on women’s football, enabling the exiled Afghan national team to return to international competition. The plea comes as the team, many of whose members fled the country after the 2021 Taliban takeover, continues to be excluded from World Cup qualifying due to FIFA regulations requiring recognition by a national federation – a federation currently prohibiting women from playing.

At a news briefing hosted by the Sports & Rights Alliance, Afghan national team captain Mursal Sadat appealed for global solidarity, urging athletes worldwide to use their platforms to support Afghan women’s fight for gender equality in sport. Sadat emphasized that even simple acts, such as social media posts, would demonstrate crucial support in the face of gender-based violence in Afghanistan.

Richard Bennett, the UN special rapporteur on Afghanistan, echoed this call, stating his support for the Sports & Rights Alliance’s request that FIFA take decisive action. “I support the call…for FIFA to take a strong stand against systematic gender oppression and ensure that Afghan women footballers in exile…can return to international competition,” Bennett wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

Former captain and team founder Khalida Popal clarified that the players aren’t seeking conflict with FIFA but rather collaboration to find solutions. “We want to work together…using Afghanistan as an example to make sure other countries don’t face what we have faced,” she stated. The team, which once boasted 25 contracted players, now mostly resides in Australia. The Taliban, while claiming to respect women’s rights within their interpretation of Islamic law, maintain their ban, deeming the issue an internal matter.

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