• Iraq is the latest country to be included in the FIFA/Coca-Cola Women’s World Ranking
  • The West Asian nation has made great efforts to develop the discipline
  • FIFA Forward has played its part in the process

July 2023 marked the start of a new era for Iraqi women’s football. With assistance from the FIFA Forward Programme, the Iraq Football Association (IFA) staged a futsal tournament with 140 players from ten teams in the city of Duhok. But this historic event was just the first step in the IFA’s overall strategy to increase women’s participation in football and give girls from different parts of the country the opportunity to play the game.

“We’ve started with futsal, but our goal is to build bridges that will eventually lead women to 11-a-side football,” said Dr. Rasha Talib, a member of the IFA’s executive committee. Now, less than a year later, that goal has been achieved, as evidenced by the highly symbolic inclusion of the national team in the March edition of the FIFA/Coca-Cola Women’s World Ranking

“Iraq’s entry in the ranking, in 172nd place, was a significant event and tangible proof of the progress made by women’s football in our country,” explains Sarah Sahebkran, a forward with the national team. “Iraq now has a place on the women’s football map. This ranking gives it more visibility and recognition at both local and international level.

“It will motivate people to support us and encourage even more girls and women to play football,” she continues. “It could also provide more opportunities to participate in international tournaments and to progress, as well as to move a little closer to gender equality in the field of sport, and football in particular.”

In any case, the IFA has spared no effort in developing the discipline. In particular, it has been behind the creation of multiple championships in all age categories. “Throughout this transition, we’ve put in place an electronic control system to manage the competitions at each stage,” explains Dr. Rasha Talib. “This system ensured compliance with the applicable regulations for participating clubs, the players, the federation and the referees.”

Because not many Iraqi women wanted – or were even able – to play football for logistical reasons or due to a lack of infrastructure, futsal has long served as an alternative for them. And while bridges between futsal and 11-a-side exist and will continue to do so, with a select few able to play internationally in both disciplines, the federation has been careful not to put all its eggs in one basket.

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