Afghanistan national football team

This article is about the men’s team. For the women's team, see Afghanistan women's national football team.

The Afghanistan national football team (Persian: تیم ملی فوتبال افغانستان Tīm-e Millī-e Fūtbāl-e Afghānestān) is the national football team of Afghanistan and is controlled by the Afghanistan Football Federation. Founded in 1922, they played their first international game against Iran in Kabul, 1941. Afghanistan then joined FIFA in 1948 and the AFC in 1954, as one of the founding members. They play their home games at the Ghazi National Olympic Stadium in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan. In 2013, Afghanistan won the 2013 SAFF Championship and earned the "FIFA Fair Play Award". Afghanistan has never qualified for the AFC Asian Cup.^[5]

Afghanistan

Nickname(s)	The Lions of Khorasan^[1]
Association	Afghanistan Football Federation
Confederation	AFC (Asia)
Sub-confederation	CAFA (Central Asia)
Head coach	Abdullah Al Mutairi
Captain	Farshad Noor
Most caps	Zohib Islam Amiri (65)
Top scorer	Faysal Shayesteh (10)
Home stadium	Ghazi Stadium
FIFA code	AFG
First colours Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	158 1 (21 September 2023)^[2]
Highest	122 (April 2014)
Lowest	204 (January 2003)
First international
Afghanistan 0–0 Iran  (Kabul, Afghanistan; 25 August 1941)^[3]
Biggest win
Bhutan 1–8 Afghanistan  (New Delhi, India; 7 December 2011)
Biggest defeat
Turkmenistan 11–0 Afghanistan  (Ashgabat, Turkmenistan; 19 November 2003)
CAFA Nations Cup
Appearances	1 (first in 2023)
Best result	Group stage (2023)
SAFF Championship
Appearances	7 (first in 2003)
Best result	Champions (2013)
Medal record Men's football SAFF Championship 2013 Nepal Team 2011 India Team 2015 India Team

History

Early history

 

Afghanistan national football team in the 1920s

Formed in 1922 and affiliated to FIFA since 1948, the Afghanistan Football Federation was one of the founding members of the Asian Football Confederation in 1954.^[6]

The first football club established in the country, Mahmoudiyeh F.C., was founded in 1934. Three years later the team traveled to India and took part in 18 games of which they won 8, lost 9 and drew 1. The second football club founded was Ariana Kabul F.C. which was established in 1941. This team traveled to Tehran, Iran upon invitation, played 3 games, winning one game and losing two.

Afghanistan's only appearance and first FIFA international match was at the Olympic Games football tournament in the 1948 Summer Olympic Games when they played Luxembourg on 26 July 1948 and lost 6–0. Prior to 2002, Afghanistan was last seen on the international stage during the 1984 AFC Asian Cup qualification, with its last match lost 6–1 against Jordan on 20 September 1984. Afghanistan played no international games from 1984 to 2002, due to the latter years of the Soviet–Afghan War, civil war in Afghanistan (1992–1996), and the Taliban regime's ban on recreational activities, including football.^[7]

2001–2010

Following the demise of the Taliban regime, the Afghan national team eventually returned to the international arena in 2002, when they played South Korea in the Asian Games, losing 2–0. Afghanistan participated in their first international tournament in the 2003 SAFF Gold Cup where they lost all three group stage matches to India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Later in the same year, Afghanistan took part in the 2004 AFC Asian Cup qualification where they won against Kyrgyzstan but lost to Nepal and failed to make it to the next round. Afghanistan started its FIFA World Cup campaign for the first time in 2003 where they played Turkmenistan in 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification. They lost both matches in aggregate of 13–0. This was the first time Afghanistan participated in FIFA World Cup qualification though they had been affiliated since 1948. The team went to Pakistan to take part in the 2005 South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup, which they lost to the Maldives.^{[citation needed]}

 

Match scene between Afghanistan and Turkmenistan in a FIFA World Cup qualification match in Kabul, 2003

They also participated in the first edition of the AFC Challenge Cup in 2006, for which they drew both matches with Chinese Taipei and the Philippines with Afghan footballers Hafizullah Qadami and Sayed Maqsood Hashemi both scoring to produce a drawn result, and on their second world cup campaign in 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification were eliminated by Syria. In the SAFF Championship 2008 Afghanistan lost to Bhutan but drew with Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Afghanistan entered the second round of the AFC Challenge Cup in 2008,^[8] by winning in group D of the AFC Challenge Cup Qualification, drawing with Bangladesh and winning against Kyrgyzstan. In the 2008 AFC Challenge Cup, Afghanistan lost all group matches to India, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. In 2009 SAFF Championship Afghanistan lost all its matches to Maldives, India and Nepal. Hashmatullah Barakzai scored Afghanistan's only goal against Maldives in that loss.^{[citation needed]}

2014 FIFA World Cup qualification

Afghanistan competed in their third World Cup qualifying campaign playing the first leg of their first match against Palestine in Tajikistan due to security reasons, which they lost, and the second leg of the match in Palestine which they drew with Balal Arezou scoring, meaning they failed to advance to the second round and were eliminated.

2011 SAFF Championship

 

Players are celebrating after winning their 2011 SAFF Championship Semi-final against Nepal

In 2011 SAFF Championship Afghanistan defeated Bhutan 8–1, the biggest victory in the history of the Afghanistan football team. In this match, Balal Arezou scored the only hat-trick of the competition with 4 goals and the team scored the quickest goal of the tournament through Ata Yamrali in the third minute. It was Afghanistan's first Semi-final. In the Semi-final of the tournament, the Afghans faced Nepal whom they beat 1–0 in extra time with the only goal scored by Balal Arezou in the 101st minute. It was the first win of Afghanistan over Nepal. In the final, Afghanistan played India to whom they lost 4–0.

2012 AFC Challenge Cup

Afghanistan defeated Bhutan 5–0 in 2012 AFC Challenge Cup qualification. In the first leg, they beat Bhutan 3–0 with Sidiq Walizada scoring all 3 goals, and 2–0 in the second leg. In the second qualification round, Afghanistan lost to Nepal and North Korea, whilst beating Sri Lanka but failed to qualify for the next stage.

Afghan Premier League

For the first time in the football history of Afghanistan the AFF announced a league where 8 teams will compete against each other. The league was established in 2012 with the first season running through September and October of that year. 8 teams were concurrently established in 2012 to become the inaugural competitors.^[9]

Players for the league were found through a reality television show called Maidan e Sabz ("Green Field").^[10] The concept came from the Afghanistan Football Federation and the Afghanistan-based MOBY Group, which owns a number of TV channels and radio stations and is the largest media group in the country. MOBY Group channels will broadcast matches. Players were voted onto teams by a jury and by the television audience. Eight teams of 18 players, one from every region, were formed.^[11]

The Afghan High Peace Council has praised the creation and development of the League as an, "opportunity to bring peace and stability" to Afghanistan.^[9]

2013 SAFF Championship winners

See also: 2013 SAFF Championship Final

 

Faqiryar

Ataie

Amiri (C)

Hadid

Faiz

Barekzay

Mashriqi

Marouf

Azadzoy

Arezou

Ahmadi

2013 SAFF Championship Final starting lineup on 11 September 2013, in Dasarath Stadium (Kathmandu, Nepal).

 

Hamidullah Karimi with the SAFF Championship trophy after their win against India

On 20 August 2013 before the 2013 SAFF Championship Afghanistan played Pakistan in a FIFA approved friendly for the first time in 36 years. This was also the first time on home ground after a decade which ended with a 3–0 victory over Pakistan with goals from Sandjar Ahmadi, Ahmad Hatifi and Maruf Mohammadi.^[12]

Afghanistan entered the 2013 SAFF Championship as the highest ranked team by FIFA in the tournament placed at 139th. Afghanistan started the campaign with a 3-goal victory over Bhutan, with goals from Amiri also known as Afghanistan's best ever player, Azadzoy and Barakzai. The second match again ended with a 3–1 victory over Sri Lanka with goals from Rafi, Amiri and Barakzai. The Semi-final of the tournament was the repeat of last year's edition with Afghanistan again defeating Nepal with a solitary goal of Sandjar Ahmadi, that took Afghanistan in to the final of the tournament against India once again. Mansur Faqiryar of Afghanistan showed an outstanding goalkeeping performance by saving two back to back penalty kicks from Nepal in the last minutes of the match. The Final match of the tournament saw the 2011 SAFF Championship finalists again at Dashrath Stadium Nepal, where Afghanistan outplayed the defending champions India by 2 goals.^[13] Afghanistan showed an outstanding performance. Goals from Azadzoy and Sandjar Ahmadi in each half of the game put the Afghan football team in front, to claim their first SAFF Championship title in their history.^[14] Mansur Faqiryar was named the best player of the tournament, for his outstanding goal keeping skills throughout the tournament.

AFC Challenge Cup 2014

In the 2014 AFC Challenge Cup, Afghanistan did well to reach the Semi-final, losing to the eventual champions Palestine, 2–0. They finished their campaign in fourth spot, the country's highest finishing place in the short term the cup has existed, losing to Maldives on a penalty shoot out: (7–8) after a 1–1 draw for third spot of the competition. On 10 June 2014 Afghanistan Football Federation moved from South Asian Football Federation SAFF to the CAFF. At the 2014 Ballon D'or ceremony, the Afghanistan Football Federation won the FIFA Fair Play Award. Afghanistan was honored with the award for the outstanding performance of the Afghanistan football during the year, despite the chaos of war and difficult political situations the country is facing. FIFA made a statement and posted on its website that "Following a year of remarkable achievement in grassroots level football, building infrastructure to further develop football throughout the country and nurturing a professional league despite enduring over a decade of disorder stemming from war, Afghanistan has been presented the 2013 FIFA Fair Play Award."

2018 FIFA World Cup qualification

 

Afghan national team before the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification match against Japan, Azadi Stadium

On 9 February 2015, it was confirmed that the AFF signed a new coach for the national team. German-Bosnian trainer Slaven Skeledzic, signed a 1-year contract with the AFF. The new trainer had earlier coached the under 17 and under 19 teams in Germany. Skeledzic played football in Germany and coached youth teams in the Bundesliga.^[15] On 27 April 2015 the AFF signed a contract with a new sponsor called Alokozay Group of Companies.^{[citation needed]}

Afghanistan began the qualification with a 6–0 loss against Syria. After this match they had to play against lower ranked Cambodia. They won their first World Cup qualification match in the history of Afghanistan football. In their 3rd match against Japan, Afghanistan lost again 6–0. Against Singapore they lost 1–0. They lost 5–2 against Syria. In October 2015 the AFF forced Skeledzic to resign from his position, after the 5–2 defeat against Syria. In November 2015, the Afghan National Team announced that Petar Segrt was appointed as the new head coach. With a new coach and new players Afghanistan won their 2nd match against Cambodia with 3–0. After the qualifications the SAFF Championship started.^{[citation needed]}

2015 SAFF Championship

See also: 2015 SAFF Championship Final

This was the last edition of the SAFF Championship where the national team of Afghanistan would play. After the team was announced Afghanistan began preparing for the tournament. They were in a group of 4 countries which was: Maldives, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Afghanistan. Afghanistan won the first match 4–0 against Bangladesh. After they won the second match against Bhutan 3–0 they qualified for the semi-finals. They won their last match against Maldives 4–1. In the semi-final Afghanistan had to play against Sri Lanka. The match ended in a 5–0 win for Afghanistan. Eventually after reaching the final quite easily, Afghanistan had to play against tournament favorite India. This was a replay of the finals in the 2011 and 2013 SAFF Championships. After 90 minutes the match ended in a 1–1 draw. After this moment India scored the 2–1 and won the 2015 SAFF Championship for the 7th time. Khaibar Amani was given the topscorer of the tournament award with 4 goals.

2019 AFC Asian Cup qualification

 

Afghan supporters watching their national team play against Japan during 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification in Azadi Stadium, Tehran.

When the tournament ended Afghanistan still had a chance to qualify for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup. After their second loss against Japan with a 5–0 defeat, Afghanistan had to win against Singapore to qualify as 4th best in their group. And so they did with a 2–1 win against Singapore and a qualification spot for the 3rd round of the 2019 AFC Asian Cup.

After the World Cup qualification ended Afghanistan played some friendly games. In September against Lebanon which the game ended in a 2–0 win for Lebanon. In October against Malaysia which ended in a 1–1 draw. Before the match against Tajikistan Segrt called up 24 players which did not include the player Zohib Islam Amiri because the player previously made the decision to not play anymore for Afghanistan. But without letting Segrt know the AFF did included Amiri in the squad. Segrt disagreed with the AFF and made the decision to quit as the head coach of the national team. This was just after his 1-year anniversary with the national team. The match against Tajikistan ended in a 1–0 loss for Afghanistan. Anoush Dastgir led the team as interim coach for this match.

In February 2017 the AFF announced the signing of Otto Pfister as the new head coach of the national team.^[16] Afghanistan played a friendly game against Singapore before the Asian Cup qualification match against Vietnam. Afghanistan won the game with 2–1 with goals from Mukhammad and Azadzoy.^[17] The important Asian Cup qualification match against Vietnam ended in a 1–1 draw with a goal from Hassan Amin.^[18] However, Afghanistan since then has suffered a serious setback. In the match against opponent Cambodia in Phnom Penh, which Afghanistan once defeated 4–0, Afghanistan had shocked by losing 0–1 against the same rival. Later, Afghanistan suffered second defeat, this time against Jordan, with the score 1–4 in Amman. Between two official qualification matches, Afghanistan also lost 0–2 to Oman in a friendly match. Afghanistan's late effort later only helped them to manage a 3–3 draw against Jordan, and Afghanistan was near the verge of being eliminated if they could not defeat Vietnam in the fifth match. At the crucial match against Vietnam in Hanoi, despite Afghanistan had nearly outplayed the host, failed efforts and bad lucks had prevented Afghanistan to seal a victory, as the match ended 0–0, effectively eliminated Afghanistan from the qualification while Vietnam went to seal the ticket to the 2019 AFC Asian Cup with Jordan, after 1–0 victory over Cambodia. Afghanistan played their last match against Cambodia who also failed to qualify for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup. The match ended in a 2–1 victory for Afghanistan.^[19] After the match it was announced that Pfister will leave his job and that Anoush Dastgir will be the new head coach of the national team with the addition of Shabir Isoufi as the new assistant coach of Afghanistan.^[20][21] On 13 July 2018 it was announced that Afghanistan will play a friendly game in Kabul, Afghanistan for the first time since 2013 against Palestine.^[22]

Afghanistan is currently rivals with Pakistan in many sports, including cricket and football. In a historic match in 2013, Afghanistan beat Pakistan, 3–0, to rekindle a famous rivalry and to play since the chaos in Afghanistan began.^[23] In their most recent matchup vs Pakistan, they lost, 2–1.

Team image

Home stadium

Further information: Ghazi Stadium

 

The Ghazi Stadium in Kabul, which is now referred to as the Afghan Football Federation Stadium

Major football matches in Afghanistan are held at the Afghan Football Federation Stadium (popularly known as the Ghazi Stadium) in Kabul. It was built in 1923 during the reign of King Amanullah Khan, who is regarded as Ghazi (Hero) for the Afghan victory in the Third Anglo-Afghan War and gaining independence for his nation after the Anglo-Afghan Treaty of 1919. The stadium has the capacity to house 25,000 people. The first international football match hosted there was played between Iran and Afghanistan in 1941 and ended as a draw, 0–0. Their 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification second leg match was played at the Ghazi Stadium against Turkmenistan which Afghanistan lost 2–0, having previously lost the first leg 11–0. The stadium is maintained and controlled by the Afghanistan Football Federation. The Afghan Premier League and other local football tournaments take place in the stadium. The Ghazi Stadium was renovated in 2011 after the entire ground was removed and replaced with new soil and artificial turf placed on top. The stadium now holds bigger sporting events. The proposed construction of a new national stadium was completed in the 2013/2014 season which cost 25 million euros.^[24] In 2015 FIFA helped the AFF with the reconstruction of new youth teams and develop also women's football for the national team.^[25]

Kit

Since 2002 until 2004, the Japanese sports brand ASICS was the sponsor for the national team. From 2005, the German sports brand Adidas was the sponsor of the national team until 2008. In 2009, the Danish sports brand Hummel equipped the national team. In 2011 the Afghanistan Football Federation had signed a four-year contract with Hummel, to provide both the men's and women's national teams with all of the sportswear from 2011 to 2015.^[26] On 6 March 2015, the Afghan Football Federation signed a new four-year contract with Hummel till 2019. On 27 April 2015, the AFF signed a contract with a new sponsor called Alokozay Group of Companies. This sponsor will be on the shirts of the national team.^[27] Hummel released in 2016 the new kits for Afghanistan. It included an integrated hijab for the female Afghanistan footballers to play with while being covered from head to toe.^[28] In December 2018, Hummel announced that it will no longer sponsor Afghanistan's football association after allegations emerged of physical, psychological and sexual abuse committed by male employees against players from the country's women's national team.^[29]

Period	Kit manufacturer	Shirt sponsor
2009–2020	Hummel	AGC (Alokozay Group of Companies)
2020–present	JAKO	AGC (Alokozay Group of Companies)

Sponsors

Alokozay, MOBY Group, Lemar & TOLO are the national team's sponsors.

Flag

The Afghanistan national team still uses the old tricolor flag of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan instead of the white flag of the Taliban government, despite the group's takeover of the country in 2021.^[30]

Results and fixtures

Main article: Afghanistan national football team results

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

  Win   Draw   Loss   Fixture

2023

Bangladesh   v   Afghanistan

3 September Friendly	Bangladesh	0–0	Afghanistan	Dhaka, Bangladesh
TBD		Report		Stadium: Bashundhara Kings Arena

Bangladesh   v   Afghanistan

7 September Friendly	Bangladesh	1–1	Afghanistan	Dhaka, Bangladesh
TBD	Morsalin   62'	Report	Sharza   52'	Stadium: Bashundhara Kings Arena

Philippines   v   Afghanistan

12 September Friendly	Philippines	2–1	Afghanistan	Manila, Philippines
19:00 UTC+8	Rasmussen   74' Rontini   81'		Popalzay   64'	Stadium: Rizal Memorial Stadium

Afghanistan   v   Mongolia

12 October 2026 WCQ R1	Afghanistan	v	Mongolia	Dushanbe, Tajikistan
--:--				Stadium: Pamir Stadium

Mongolia   v   Afghanistan

17 October 2026 WCQ R1	Mongolia	v	Afghanistan	Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
--:--				Stadium: MFF Football Centre

Coaching staff

Position	Name
Head coach	Abdullah Al Mutairi
Assistant coach	Ali Yarzada
National Team Manager	Mustafa Mehrzad
Coordinator	Sayed Ali Kazemi
Goalkeeping coach	Hamidullah Yosufzai
Physiotherapist	Sadeq Morfez
Physiotherapist	Mortaz Ashgar
Sports-masseur	Danish Hosseini
Conditioning coach	Siyar Kabiri
Equipment Manager	Sharif Sarwari
Media	Shams Amini
Media	Firooz Mashoof

Coaching history

As of 26 April 2023

Caretaker managers are listed in italics.

• ? (1941–1946)
• Sardar Mohammad Farooq Khan Seraj (c.1949^[31][32])
• ? (1950-1974)
•   Vladimir Salenko (1975–1976)
•   Sergei Salnikov (1976–1977)
•   Nikolai Yefimov (1977–1978)
•   Islam Gul (1978–1979)
•   Sayed Ahmad Zia Muzafari (1979–1981)
•   Khwaja Aziz (1981–1987)
•   Gennadi Sarychev (1987–1988)
• None^{[note 1]} (1988–2003)
•   Mir Ali Asghar Akbarzada (2003–2004)
•   Mohammad Yousef Kargar (2004–2005)
•   Klaus Stärk (2005–2008)
•   Mohammad Yousef Kargar (2008–2014)
•   Erich Rutemöller (2014–2015)
•   Hossein Saleh (2015)
•   Slaven Skeledžić (2015)
•   Petar Šegrt (2015–2016)
•   Anoush Dastgir (2016–2017)
•   Otto Pfister (2017–2018)
•   Anoush Dastgir (2018–2023)
•   Abdullah Al Mutairi (2023–present)

Players

Current squad

• The following players were named in the squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC) between 12 and 17 October 2023.^[33]

• Caps and goals are correct as of 12 September 2023 after the match against Philippines.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Faisal Hamidi	(1997-03-16) 16 March 1997 (age 26)	7	0	Attack Energy SC
22	1GK	Omid Haydari	(1999-04-24) 24 April 1999 (age 24)	0	0	Sorkh Poshan
23	1GK	Mohammad Jan Mohammadi	(2000-12-21) 21 December 2000 (age 22)	0	0	Afghan Muhajir
2	2DF	Farzad Ataie	(1991-12-30) 30 December 1991 (age 31)	10	0	Abu Muslim
4	2DF	Mahboob Hanifi	(1997-03-22) 22 March 1997 (age 26)	5	0	Attack Energy
14	2DF	Zelfy Nazary	(1995-01-01) 1 January 1995 (age 28)	11	1	St Albans Saints SC
12	2DF	Najim Haidary	(1999-12-22) 22 December 1999 (age 23)	9	0	GVV Unitas
3	2DF	Mosawer Ahadi	(2000-03-08) 8 March 2000 (age 23)	3	0	HIFK
8	3MF	Farshad Noor	(1994-10-02) 2 October 1994 (age 29)	29	2	DPMM FC
17	3MF	Rahmat Akbari	(2000-06-22) 22 June 2000 (age 23)	1	0	Torpedo Kutaisi
5	3MF	Adam Najem	(1995-01-19) 19 January 1995 (age 28)	12	0	Bhayangkara F.C.
21	3MF	Yama Sherzad	(2001-01-01) 1 January 2001 (age 22)	2	0	Biel-Bienne
16	3MF	Taufee Skandari	(1999-04-02) 2 April 1999 (age 24)	5	0	B36 Tórshavn
20	3MF	Mohammad Noman Walizada	(2002-11-16) 16 November 2002 (age 20)	5	0	Istiqlal
6	3MF	Noor Husin	(1997-03-03) 3 March 1997 (age 26)	16	0	Southend
10	3MF	Faysal Shayesteh	(1991-06-10) 10 June 1991 (age 32)	49	9	Sreenidi Deccan
7	3MF	Mustafa Azadzoy	(1992-07-24) 24 July 1992 (age 31)	30	2	SV Atlas Delmenhorst
11	4FW	Omran Haydary	(1998-01-13) 13 January 1998 (age 25)	12	1	Torpedo Kutaisi
18	4FW	Omid Musawi	(2001-01-01) 1 January 2001 (age 22)	5	0	Achyronas-Onisilos
13	4FW	Moshtaq Ahmadi	(1996-04-21) 21 April 1996 (age 27)	2	0	Piteå IF
15	4FW	Maziar Kouhyar	(1997-09-30) 30 September 1997 (age 26)	7	0	York
9	4FW	Jabar Sharza	(1994-04-06) 6 April 1994 (age 29)	7	3	free agent
19	4FW	Omid Popalzay	(1996-01-25) 25 January 1996 (age 27)	32	3	Nejmeh

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called up for the team within the last 12 months and are still available for selection.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up

Records

As of 12 September 2022^[34]

Players in bold are still active with Afghanistan.

Most appearances

 

Zohib Islam Amiri is Afghanistan's most capped player with 65 appearances.

Rank	Player	Caps	Goals	Period
1	Zohib Islam Amiri	66	6	2005–present
2	Faysal Shayesteh	57	10	2014–present
3	Abassin Alikhil	41	0	2011–present
4	Mustafa Hadid	39	2	2009–2018
5	Ovays Azizi	38	0	2015–present
	Djelaludin Sharityar	38	1	2007–2015
7	Omid Popalzay	37	6	2015–present
8	Ahmad Hatifi	34	4	2011–2016
9	Zubayr Amiri	33	5	2011–present
10	Noraollah Amiri	31	4	2015–2021

Top goalscorers

 

Faysal Shayesteh is Afghanistan's top scorer with 10 goals.

Rank	Player	Goals	Caps	Ratio	Period
1	Faysal Shayesteh	10	57	0.18	2014–present
2	Belal Arezou	9	26	0.35	2011–2017
3	Khaibar Amani	7	21	0.33	2015–2019
4	Sandjar Ahmadi	6	22	0.27	2011–2015
	Omid Popalzay	6	37	0.16	2015–present
	Zohib Islam Amiri	6	66	0.09	2006–present
7	Hashmatullah Barakzai	5	28	0.18	2007–2014
	Zubayr Amiri	5	33	0.15	2011–present
9	Noraollah Amiri	4	31	0.13	2015–2021
	Ahmad Hatifi	4	34	0.12	2011–2016

Competitive record

FIFA World Cup

Year	FIFA World Cup record								Qualification record
	Round	Pld	W	D	L	F	A		Pos.	Pld	W	D	L	F	A
1930	Not member of FIFA								Not member of FIFA
1934
1938
1950	Did not enter								Did not enter
1954
1958
1962
1966
1970
1974
1978
1982
1986
1990
1994
1998
2002
2006	Did not qualify								1st round	2	0	0	2	0	13
2010									1st round	2	0	0	2	1	5
2014									1st round	2	0	1	1	1	3
2018									4th	8	3	0	5	8	24
2022									4th	8	1	3	4	5	15
2026	TBD							TBD
Totals	0/21	–	–	–	–	–	–	—	22	4	4	14	15	60

Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks; correct as of 15 June 2021 after the match against India.

AFC Asian Cup

Year	AFC Asian Cup record								AFC Asian Cup qualification
	Round	Pld	W	D	L	F	A		Pos.	Pld	W	D	L	F	A
1956	Withdrew								Withdrew
1960	Did not enter								Did not enter
1964	Withdrew								Withdrew
1968	Did not enter								Did not enter
1972
1976	Did not qualify								4th	6	0	1	5	3	18
1980									3rd	4	0	1	3	4	11
1984									5th	4	0	1	3	1	20
1988	Did not enter								Did not enter
1992
1996
2000
2004	did not qualify								3rd	2	1	0	1	2	5
2007	Did not enter								Did not enter
2011
2015	Did not qualify								AFC Challenge Cup
2019									3rd	6	1	3	2	7	10
2023									3rd	11	1	4	6	9	21
2027	TBD	TBD
Totals	0/17	–	–	–	–	–	–		—	33	3	10	20	26	85

Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks; correct as of 27 March 2018 after the match against Cambodia.

CAFA Championship

Year	CAFA Championship record
	Round	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
2023	Group stage	2	0	0	2	1	9
Total	1/1	2	0	0	2	1	9

SAFF Championship (2003-2015)

SAFF Championship record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1993	Not a part of SAFF
1995
1997
1999
2003	Group stage	8th	3	0	0	3	0	6
2005	Group stage	6th	3	1	0	2	3	11
2008	Group stage	7th	3	0	2	1	5	7
2009	Group stage	7th	3	0	0	3	1	7
2011	Runners-up	2nd	5	3	1	1	13	7
2013	Champions	1st	5	4	1	0	9	1
2015	Runners-up	2nd	5	4	0	1	17	3
2018 – onwards	Not a part of SAFF
Totals	1 title	7/11	27	12	4	11	48	42

Afghanistan were members of the South Asian Football Federation between 2005 and 2015. As a result, they did not enter the competition between 1993 and 1999 and have not entered it since 2015.

Summer Olympics

Summer Olympics record
Year	Round	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1900 to   1936	did not enter
1948	Preliminary round	1	0	0	1	0	6
1952	did not enter
1956 to   1960	Withdrew
1964 to   1988	did not enter
Since 1992	See Afghanistan under-23 team.
Total	1/20	1	0	0	1	0	6

Asian Games

Asian Games record
Year	Round	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1951	Fourth place	2	0	0	2	0	5
1954	Group stage	2	0	0	2	4	12
1958 to   1998	did not enter
Since 2002	See Afghanistan under-23 team.
Totals	2/13	4	0	0	4	4	17

AFC Challenge Cup (2006-2014)

Year	Final Tournament								Qualification
	Round	Pld	W	D	L	F	A		Pos.	Pld	W	D	L	F	A
2006	Group stage	3	0	2	1	3	5		Qualified automatically
2008	Group stage	3	0	0	3	0	10		1st	2	1	1	0	1	0
2010	Withdrew								Withdrew
2012	did not qualify								3rd	5	3	0	2	6	3
2014	Fourth place	5	1	3	1	4	4		1st	3	2	1	0	3	1
Totals	3/5	11	1	5	5	7	19		—	10	6	2	2	10	4

Honours

Regional

• SAFF Championship
  •   Champions (1): 2013
  •   Runners-up (2): 2011, 2015
• South Asian Games
  •   Silver Medal (1): 2010

See also

• Afghanistan women's national football team
• Afghanistan national under-23 football team
• Afghanistan national under-20 football team
• Afghanistan national under-17 football team
• Afghanistan national beach soccer team
• Afghanistan national futsal team
• Afghanistan Football Federation
• Roshan Premier League
• Football in Afghanistan
• Sport in Afghanistan

Notes

1. From 1988 to 2003, Afghanistan didn't play any matches due to security concerns within the country.

References

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3. "Afghanistan - Historical results".
4. Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. 28 September 2023. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
5. . fifa.com. 14 March 2017. Archived from the original on 9 June 2007. Retrieved 14 March 2017.
6. "Afghanistan National Football Team" 2 February 2016 at the Wayback Machine by Afghan-web.com (Afghan-web)
7. "Afghan Football Veterans, Experts Reflect on Sports' Growth". Tolo News. 12 September 2013. Retrieved 12 September 2022.
8. . Archived from the original on 13 February 2013.
9. Afghan Football League Heads to First Semi-Final 15 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine by Rezwan Natiq and Mir Sayed (Tolo News, 10 October 2012)
10. Roshan Afghan Premier League a hit with fans by Tahir Qadiry (BBC News, 22 September 2012)
11. "Talent search at Hindukush" (in German). fussball.de. 28 August 2012. Retrieved 29 August 2012.
12. by FIFA (FIFA, 22 August 2013)
13. . fifa.com. 6 May 2014. Archived from the original on 15 March 2017. Retrieved 14 March 2017.
14. . fifa.com. 22 October 2013. Archived from the original on 15 March 2017. Retrieved 14 March 2017.
15. . fifa.com. 25 February 2015. Archived from the original on 15 March 2017. Retrieved 14 March 2017.
16. . 12 February 2017. Archived from the original on 13 July 2017. Retrieved 12 February 2017.
17. "Lions draw positives from defeat". TNP. 24 March 2017.
18. "AFC Asian Cup match: AFG-VIE". AFC. 28 March 2017.
19. "Afghanistan edge Cambodia". AFC. 27 March 2018.
20. "Afghanistan Football Federation introduces new head coach". AFF. 10 July 2018.
21. "NEC-trainer Dastgir nieuwe bondscoach van Afghanistan". Gelderlander (in Dutch).
22. "Kabul To Host Afghanistan-Palestine Friendly Football Match". ToloNews.
23. Bezhan, Frud (21 August 2013). "Historic Soccer Match Brings Unity To Afghanistan". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
24. War and Football: The Story of Football’s Development in War-Torn Afghanistan by Huffingtonpost (13 February 2013)
25. by FIFA (FIFA, 8 April 2015)
26. "Sponsorships Hummel". Hummel.
27. . The Kabul Times. 24 July 2016. Archived from the original on 3 August 2018. Retrieved 3 August 2018.
28. . Hummel. 7 March 2016. Archived from the original on 11 April 2016. Retrieved 31 March 2016.
29. . Archived from the original on 6 December 2018.
30. Montague, James; Secker, Bradley (18 November 2021). "A Resilient Team for a Broken Nation". The New York Times.
31. "برگی از تاریخ: سفر تیم ملی فوتبال افغانستان به تهران در سال 1328ش | خبرگزاری شیعیان افغانستان | Afghanistan - Shia News Agency".
32. "Home Page | خبرگزاری فارس". www.farsnews.ir.
33. "https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid071B3G4TPtL2XnuqaiDiENw7AYe2xJreHoCDrMpyFTGpp4uzUdf5SRnmVyArHoWYyl&id=100064534756711&sfnsn=scwspmo". Facebook. Afghanistan Football Federation. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help); Missing or empty |url= (help)
34. "Afghanistan". National Football Teams.

External links

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Afghanistan men's national association football team.

• Official website
• ELORATINGS
• Afghanistan's FIFA profile
• Afghanistan's AFC profile