Early in December, India took the South Asian Football Federation Championship in New Delhi. That the Indians won their sixth title was hardly a surprise. The fact that their title opponent was Afghanistan most certainly was.
By the late 1990s, football in Afghanistan was effectively extinguished. The Taliban had taken to using Ghazi stadium for public executions, and the Lions of Khorasan had not kicked a ball in anger since 1984, when the Soviets were still in action against the mujahideen.
The removal of the Taliban from power in 2002 heralded a change in the fortunes of football in the country.
The changes in such a short time have been significant. A partly professional league based in Kabul was developed in 2006, and perhaps more significantly, a second regional league featuring 34 teams from all of Afghanistan’s provinces was formed in 2007. Even a women’s league featuring 16 teams in Kabul was formed in October 2011.
The national teams have gone from strength to strength. The U-19s recently put nine past a hapless Maldives, and the Lions of Khorasan had a magnificent tussle with Palestine in the Asian World Cup Qualifiers in June, sadly losing after having to play their home game in Tajikistan. The U-16s found themselves matching Asia’s middle tier sides such as Kuwait and the UAE.
Yet football development is fraught with difficulty in any region where security issues abound. Football coaches, players and administrators take great risks in engaging in football in the more volatile regions. Corruption and politics permeate society and football is no exception. These are the obstacles and risks that many Afghans are prepared to confront, and their courage should be applauded.
In Kandahar, a town whose name is synonymous with the Taliban insurgency, a football tournament was recently held featuring teams from Kandahar, Helmand and Zabul provinces. Even a team from Urozgan, where Australian troops are currently combating militants, played in the tournament.
But perhaps the best example of football and its role and development in such a volatile region came with the game between FC Kandahar and Naseeb FC from Balochistan, Pakistan. A border that is normally associated with the movement of militants was flooded with football fans. The game was part of the Balochistan Provincial Football Tournament, and this game was one of the showpieces.
The pitch was doused by a fire truck before the game to keep the dust down, and fans were adorned in local tribal clothes as opposed to flying the local colours. FC Kandahar went on to win 2-1 in front of a raucous crowd who were only there for one thing, the football.
On December 15, the Ghazi National Stadium was re-opened with new artificial turf and 25 million euros’ worth of upgrades. With a FIFA-standard pitch, Afghanistan is hoping to one day be able to host other nations in regional and world tournament qualification. The hope is that for the next series of qualifications for FIFA and AFC tournaments, the Lions of Khorasan will once again be able to host games in Kabul.
All of this development at the grass roots is having an effect. Football programmes are being supported by international agencies as they are seen as effective tools for fostering peace, while in New Delhi, eleven men found themselves vying to make the Afghans the champions of South Asia.
The country has a long way to go, and the Taliban are as dangerous as ever. Indeed, the impending drawdown of foreign troops could result in the degradation of security in the country. The future is one of uncertainty. However, at the least, football is playing some part in assisting Afghanistan to become a more hopeful country.
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