In Morocco, exiled Afghan women footballers find hope on the pitch

Manoozh Noori said she "wanted to die" erstwhile the Taliban returned to powerfulness successful Afghanistan successful 2021. That meant she could nary longer bash what she loved most: playing football.

Noori, present 22, fled the state wherever the United Nations accidental authorities person implemented a "gender apartheid", and has been playing successful a squad of Afghan exile women, precocious taking portion successful a first-of-its-kind tourney successful Morocco.

"I had asked myself: bash I privation to enactment successful this state with radical who privation to forbid women from studying, from playing football, from doing anything?" Noori told AFP.

The Taliban authorities, who accidental that women's rights are protected by Islamic law, person banned girls and women from schools beyond the property of 12, and besides from astir jobs and nationalist services -- and from playing sports.

Noori had defied household unit to correspond Afghanistan professionally by playing for the country's nationalist women's squad earlier a Taliban authorities returned to power.

She said she buried her trophies and medals successful her family's backyard and near the state for Australia.

Noori's team, Afghan Women United, was formed betwixt Europe and Australia, wherever different teammates person besides been surviving since 2021.

'A beauteous story'

The squad played their archetypal planetary matches astatine the FIFA Unites: Women's Series precocious past period successful Morocco -- and Noori scored the team's archetypal extremity successful the opening crippled against Chad.

They went connected to suffer some to Chad and Tunisia though they registered a large 7-0 triumph against Libya. But the tourney wide was a large triumph for the Afghan women.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino, who attended 1 of their games, described their information arsenic "a beauteous story" that the women were penning "for truthful galore girls and women each implicit the world".

Nilab Mohammadi, a 28-year-old striker and erstwhile worker who besides represented the Afghan nationalist team, said shot was "not conscionable a athletics -- it represents beingness and hope".

"There is nary much state successful Afghanistan, particularly for Afghan women," Mohammadi added. "But now, we are going to beryllium their voice."

Twenty-year-old midfielder Mina Ahmadi said "a imagination was taken distant from us" backmost home, "but erstwhile FIFA recognised us, it was arsenic if a portion of that imagination came true".

"This caller escapade is simply a blessed infinitesimal for us," added Ahmadi, who is present studying aesculapian sciences successful Australia.

"It won't halt anytime soon, due to the fact that we volition support moving forward."

'Just to play football'

FIFA has yet to determine whether the exile squad tin vie successful authoritative planetary matches arsenic representing Afghanistan, but the players stay determined to get there.

The Afghan Women United present person 1 goal: to person the squad recognised by FIFA arsenic the Afghan nationalist women's squad since women successful the state are not allowed to play the game.

"These women are incredible," said Aish Ravi, a researcher connected sex equity successful sports who worked with respective of the players erstwhile they archetypal arrived successful Australia successful 2021.

"They are beardown and inspiring," she added. "They've had to flooded tremendous adversity conscionable to play football.

"This athletics is much than a game," Ravi said. "It symbolises state for them."

Ahmadi said she dreamed of playing successful Europe 1 day, but being acold from location tin beryllium difficult.

"It's precise hard to get utilized to a state wherever you didn't turn up," she said. "You miss your household and friends... But we person to support moving forward."

Originally published connected France24