Afghanistan, qualifying as the fifth team in Asian Futsal, defeated Kyrgyzstan 5-3 in the playoff, securing their first-ever qualification for the World Cup. This victory of Afghanistan’s national futsal team has sparked a wave of reactions and celebrations among the country’s citizens, including political leaders and former government officials. They emphasized the team’s rise from adversity, achieving such success without any government support and even lacking a homeland to return to. Previously, the Iranian coach of Afghanistan’s National Futsal Team stated: “Asia must acknowledge Afghanistan’s prowess in futsal.” The FIFA Futsal World Cup competitions will commence in September of this year, with Afghanistan competing in the group stage against teams from Angola, Croatia, France, the Netherlands, and Tajikistan.
In the final playoff match of the AFC Futsal Asian Cup, the Afghanistan futsal team defeated Kyrgyzstan 5-3 and qualified for the World Cup for the first time. This match took place on Sunday, April 28, in Thailand.
The Afghanistan National Futsal Team started their first appearance in the AFC Futsal Asian Cup with a lineup against the Bahrain national team and won 3-2. In the next encounter with the Kuwait national futsal team, the Afghanistan team managed to equalize. Considering the draw between Afghanistan and Kuwait in the match, the goal difference determined the advancing team, with Afghanistan advancing to the quarter-finals with a better goal difference.
The national futsal team of Afghanistan has qualified for the World Cup for the first time, having previously advanced to the AFC Futsal Asian Cup this year. In the group stage of these competitions, they lost 3-1 to Iran, drew 3-3 with Kuwait, and won 3-2 against Bahrain.
The 2024 AFC Futsal Asian Cup qualifiers, featuring 16 teams, began on April 17 in Bangkok, the capital of Thailand. Afghanistan was placed in Group D alongside Iran, Bahrain, and Kuwait. Before these matches, the team had training camps lasting 45 days in Mashhad and Tehran, 10 days in Lebanon, and one week in Thailand.
However, Majid Mortezaie, the head coach of the Afghanistan National Futsal Team, has stated that the players and staff of this team have overcome many difficulties to achieve success. He expressed hope that Afghanistan will also be well-represented in the FIFA Futsal World Cup.
Additionally, Mahdi Nawrozi, the captain of the national futsal team, has said that he is more pleased for the people of Afghanistan than for himself; people who have finally found laughter on their lips after years of war and conflict. He said, “We know that today, celebrations are taking place across Afghanistan. Our people have been involved in war since birth, and we have done something for them to celebrate for a day, even for an hour, and be happy.”
This victory has sparked waves of joy among citizens. Political figures and former government officials have reacted to the Afghanistan futsal team’s qualification for the World Cup. Afghan citizens have celebrated this victory by sharing joyful moments on social media platforms. From school students to shopkeepers in markets, everyone has honored the country’s futsal team’s qualification for the World Cup with tears and happiness.
Additionally, Ashraf Ghani, Hamid Karzai, Abdullah Abdullah, Salahuddin Rabbani, Ahmad Massoud, and several other former officials have separately hailed Afghanistan’s futsal team’s qualification for the FIFA Futsal World Cup as a historic event.
Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban spokesperson, has congratulated this victory through a tweet but has not made any commitment regarding strengthening or cooperating with this team on behalf of the Taliban. This has sparked reactions from some citizens, especially social media users. They have accused the Taliban of displaying ethnic discrimination towards the players. According to them, the majority of the country’s futsal team players are Hazara, and therefore, they have been subjected to neglect.
Rahmatullah Nabil, the former head of Afghanistan’s National Directorate of Security (NDS), has welcomed this victory, stating that the members of this team had no supporters except the prayers of their mothers. He wrote in a tweet: “They rose from the dust of the ruins, with hearts full of passion and determination, they went to the battlefield. They had no supporter, no companion, only the ball, the field, and the prayers of their mothers supported them.”
Simultaneously, some citizens of the country have stated that the players of the Afghanistan national futsal team lack government support and cannot even return to their homeland after the victory. They have said that this victory is accompanied by both joy and sorrow.
Ahmad Shoaib Fetri, the former head of Information Technology at the Secretariat of the Afghanistan Parliament, wrote that when the Afghanistan National Futsal Team qualified for the World Cup, they faced intense mixed emotions of joy and sorrow. He added, “There is double joy for qualifying for the World Cup and severe sorrow for a country that does not appreciate these individuals despite all their honorable achievements.”
Kawa Jobran, a poet and writer currently in exile, wrote, “Imagine the members of a national futsal team of a country returning to host countries after a victory, where they are immigrants, is there any greater misfortune other than this?”
Homeira Qaderi, a storyteller, wrote, “After all the political humiliation and sorrow, it is this sport that has brought joy to the heart of our land.”
Asad Buda, one of the exile writers, wrote: “The most interesting news in the world is that the homeless futsal team won the game and qualified for the World Cup.” He added: “The futsal team is the team of workers and refugees. Most likely, most of them are engaged in hard and laborious work. We owe this small joy to the honorable workers and refugees. The positive aspect of the story is also this. The next game of this team will be in our historic home, the city of Samarkand.”
Abdul Azim Badakhshi and Baz Mohammad Mubariz, professional UFC athletes, Mohammad Bashir Taraki, the head coach of the Afghanistan national taekwondo team, and several other prominent sports figures, have congratulated this victory by posting videos.
However, Farhad Darya, the renowned singer of Afghanistan, wrote on his Facebook page that upon hearing the news of the Afghanistan National Futsal Team’s qualification for the World Cup, he shouted in joy. He wrote: “Upon hearing this blessed news, I shouted so loudly that our kitten, which usually falls asleep calmly on top of the cupboard after its morning bread, fell in fear.” Mr. Darya also critized of the lack of facilities and neglect towards this team and said: “Our team had neither facilities nor budget! They only achieved this victory through hard work, self-confidence, and great determination. Please show millionfold support for this team to show that the heart of a nation beats marvelously for this team.”
Some citizens of the country have also pointed out the factors behind the victory of this team. They have praised the sponsor and the head coach of the national futsal team and called for the appreciation of these two individuals.
Waheed Paiman, an Afghan journalist, wrote that the victory of the Afghanistan National Futsal Team has a hidden aspect. According to him, the man who financially supports this team and has organized several training camps for the national team is called Nasir Sadaqat. Mr. Paiman mentioned the financial supporter of the national futsal team by stating, “He signed a contract with an Iranian coach, removed the national team from government management, and provided sports halls for the training of the Afghanistan national team in Iran.”
On the other hand, video clips of the joyful moments of Afghan players after qualifying for the World Cup show them dancing and celebrating. These videos have been widely circulated.
It is worth mentioning that the tenth FIFA Futsal World Cup will be held from September 14th to October 6th, 2024, in Uzbekistan, with 24 teams participating.
You can read the Persian version of this report here:
صعود تیم ملی فوتسال افغانستان به جام جهانی؛ دست تهی و همت بلند