If you ask most people in Pakistan about their favorite sport, the answer will almost always be cricket. Football rarely makes the list—and when it comes to women’s football, the conversation is nearly silent.
But that’s starting to change.
Under the leadership of newly elected Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) President Syed Mohsin Gilani, there’s a renewed push to bring women’s football to the forefront. Gilani has made it clear: expanding opportunities for women in the sport is no longer an afterthought—it’s a top priority.
“Promoting large-scale participation of women in football is our foremost mission,” Gilani stated in a recent press briefing held in Lahore.
For years, Pakistan’s national women’s football team has been largely invisible on the global stage. After internal crises and governance issues led to a FIFA suspension, the team was effectively frozen out of international play. Over the past two years, they’ve only appeared in three official matches.
That changed earlier this year, when Pakistan’s FIFA suspension was lifted following constitutional reforms and a transparent election process. Since then, Gilani’s administration has taken swift steps to re-establish the country’s presence in regional and international competitions.
Pakistan is now set to participate in the upcoming AFC Women’s Asian Cup qualifiers, where they’ll face off against teams like Chinese Taipei, Indonesia, and Kyrgyzstan. It’s a bold step forward after years of uncertainty.
At the grassroots level, the PFF is also collaborating with FIFA to launch development programs like “Football for Schools” and “FIFA Arena,” aimed at integrating football into school curriculums and building talent pipelines from an early age.
After years of setbacks and silence, women’s football in Pakistan is being given a real shot—not just to survive, but to thrive.
