When chasing a ball puts your life in danger

SabadellA woman chasing a ball was never well-received in Afghanistan. But with the Taliban's rise to power in 2021, it became completely forbidden. Women cannot play football in Afghanistan, nor can they participate in any other sport. However, the Afghan women's national football team has risen from the ashes, returning to the pitch this October and participating in an international competition. All thanks to Khalida Popal, the team's first captain, who refused to give up. "It has been a very proud moment and our way of fighting against the ideology that considers women should stay in the kitchen," she says with conviction. Of course, the road has not been easy.

Their debut was in Morocco, in the FIFA United Women's Series 2025 tournament. The Afghan team faced opponents in Chad, Tunisia, and Libya. They lost the first two matches decisively because they had no opportunity to train as a team before playing. But the third one They won by a landslide: 7-0The Afghan national anthem played solemnly, and the country's flag was unfurled. But not the current white flag of the Taliban, but the tricolor—black, red, and green—from the republican era because, as one might expect, the Taliban have not recognized the women's national team.

In fact, this has been footballer Popal's great battle: to get FIFA to recognize an Afghan women's national team, since its existence within the Asian country is impossible. For this reason, she has moved heaven and earth for four years: she spearheaded a petition campaign and gathered support in collaboration with the Malala Fund, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the Sport Rights Alliance.

Finally, last May, the world football governing body accepted the creation ofa team of Afghan women refugees called Afghan Women Unitedwith which the players have been able to return to the field. However, the team is not considered an official national team because, according to FIFA regulations, it should have the endorsement of the Afghan Football Federation, the entity that governs the sport at the national level in Afghanistan. And this is currently impossible, because it is controlled by the Taliban. However, Popal is not giving up: her next milestone is for the team to be recognized as an official national team.

Diaspora of players around the world

In fact, the team is made up of footballers who played in Afghanistan and were evacuated from the country when the Taliban returned to power because their lives were in danger. Popal was also key to achieving this: through the Girl Power organizationThe organization, which she founded in 2014, helped no fewer than 200 players and their families leave Afghanistan, finding them homes in various countries. Some went to Australia, others to the United Kingdom, Portugal, Italy, Canada… Although scattered around the world, Girl Power has also supported them so they could return to training and playing for local teams in their respective countries.

In June, after the creation of the Afghan refugee team was confirmed, FIFA organized three selection processes, one in Australia and two in the United Kingdom, to choose the lucky players. A total of 76 players were selected to form part of the brand-new team. The problem was that they didn't have the opportunity to train together before meeting in Morocco to participate in the competition. But the most important thing was to play and represent Afghanistan again.

“We use sport and education as tools to empower girls and women from all cultures and social backgrounds,” explains Popal. This is the goal of Girl Power, which works in countries as diverse as Mexico and Nigeria, and aims to expand its activities to other places. Last week, Popal traveled to Catalonia, visited the Sabadell Sports Center, and led a workshop with the Women's Under-18 B team. The footballer, who had to retire due to knee injuries, currently lives in Denmark, where she went into exile in 2011 after receiving death threats in Afghanistan for playing football, even though the Taliban were still a decade away from returning to power.