Pakistan unveils women’s football strategy

Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) on Monday launched a five-pillar strategy aimed at developing women's football from grassroots participation to the national team and creating sustainable opportunities for players, coaches, referees and administrators.

The Pakistan Women's Football Strategy 2026-2030, presented under the theme "From Paper to Pitch", focuses on participation and competition, player development and high performance, education and capacity building, promotion and inclusion, and governance and leadership.

The strategy is built around the existing women's football structure in Pakistan, which includes 62 registered clubs and academies, 673 registered female players and five certified female referees, according to the federation.

PFF President Syed Mohsin Gilani said the launch came at a significant moment for women's football in the country.

"This is a historic year for women's football in Pakistan," Gilani said, pointing to the women's national team's participation in a FIFA event and its improved position in the world rankings.

He said the strategy would focus on improving the national team's performance, developing young players and building a broader and stronger football ecosystem for women.

"We need to develop not only players but also coaches, referees, managers and leaders," Gilani said.

The strategy proposes expanding grassroots and youth competitions and introducing a phased competition structure covering national, provincial and district women's leagues. It also calls for comprehensive player registration and a national talent identification system.

Head of Women's Football Muzghan Orakzai said the objective was to establish a clear pathway for girls entering the sport at grassroots level to progress to the national team.

"The aim is not to start from zero, but to strengthen what already exists," Orakzai said.

Under the high-performance pillar, the federation plans to establish regional training centres, national youth team programmes and an integrated high-performance system for the senior women's team. The strategy sets a target of at least 10 international matches a year for the senior national side.

The federation also plans to train and certify at least 250 women coaches across the country's four regions and increase the number of registered female referees to 100.

The promotion and inclusion pillar calls for awareness programmes in schools, colleges and universities, alongside marketing and communications initiatives, media partnerships and efforts to increase fan engagement. The federation aims to reach at least 2,000 girls annually through programmes across the four regions.

Governance reforms will focus on increasing women's representation in decision-making, strengthening monitoring and reporting, professionalising clubs and leagues, and improving safeguarding and player welfare systems.

PFF Chief Operating Officer Shahid Khokhar said effective planning was intended to align ambitions with practical realities, while Technical Director Adeel Rizki described youth football as central to the strategy's success.

"Over the next three years, much will depend on what we do for young players," Rizki said.

Prime Minister's Coordinator for the Ministry of Inter-Provincial Coordination Syeda Mehreen Sajid welcomed the effort to establish a clear pathway and called for talent in smaller cities and towns to be included alongside major urban centres.

By 2030, the strategy envisages increased participation by girls, more players, coaches and referees, greater opportunities for women in leadership and a professional, accountable and safe football system.

The federation said its broader mission was to establish women's football as one of Pakistan's prominent sports sectors while creating an inclusive pathway for talent from grassroots level to the highest stage.