KABUL: Afghanistan’s action-starved football fans are predicting a morale-boosting victory for the national side in their first home game for 10 years when they take on Pakistan Tuesday.
The match at the Afghanistan Football Federation (AFF) stadium in Kabul has sparked major interest in the war-torn country, with a sell-out crowd expected at the afternoon game.
Afghanistan, ranked 139th in the world, last played at home in 2003 in a clash against Turkmenistan and have not played Pakistan, their eastern neighbor and rival, in Kabul since 1977.
“I’m very glad Afghanistan play Pakistan here,” Ghulam Abbas Kohi, a 16-year-old student, told AFP as he picked up tickets from a sales booth in the city.
“I don’t remember any other match like this in my whole life.
“I’m sure Afghanistan are going to score a dozen goals and win. We have a strong team. I have bought 10 tickets and I also have Afghanistan flags to wave. I’m very excited.”
Tickets cost between 100 and 300 Afghanis ($2 and $5) for the game, which will be played on an artificial pitch at the 6,000-seater ground.
The FIFA-sanctioned match is being promoted as an international friendly, but cross-border tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan are likely to boost patriotic fervor on both sides.
Afghans and Pakistanis blame each other for violence plaguing both countries, with many in Afghanistan convinced that Pakistan is still pulling the strings behind a 12-year Taleban insurgency.
Pakistan was one of only three countries that recognized the 1996-2001 Taleban regime in Kabul until the hard-line Islamists were defeated by a US-led invasion for sheltering Al-Qaeda after the 9/11 attacks.
“I am sure Afghanistan will win, and hope this victory will be a response to Pakistan’s interference in Afghanistan,” said Mohammad Ali, 20, as he picked up two $5 tickets.
“I’m going with all my friends to this match to support our team. We need to win.”
But retired Afghan football hero Mohammad Saber Rohparwar told AFP that the game should be a demonstration of unity between the two troubled nations.
“I hope it brings joy and hope to the people of both countries,” said the former national captain, who has returned to Kabul from his home in Germany for the match.
“I don’t want to talk politics, but it appears politicians have failed in attempts to bring the two nations closer and help solve the problems shadowing our ties.
“I hope the game helps rebuild trust and strengthen good relations.”
He said he had returned to his homeland to give moral support and to help motivate the Afghan team.
“I have already seen them in action and a.m. happy to see they are strong, motivated and professional.”
Football chiefs in Pakistan, ranked 167th in the world, say the game will “create history” as the two sides meet in Kabul for the first time in 36 years.
“It is very exciting to send our team across the border to Afghanistan,” Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) secretary Ahmed Yar Khan Lodhi told AFP.
Afghanistan and Pakistan frequently held sports fixtures in the past, but ties were cut after the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, followed in subsequent decades by civil war and Taleban rule.
Pakistan has hosted no top-level international sport since Islamist militants attacked the Sri Lankan cricket team in 2009, wounding members of the visiting team and killing eight Pakistanis.
“The fact that we are hosting our first international game in 10 years, and the first against Pakistan in Kabul since 1977, represents a major highlight for football in our country,” AFF secretary general Sayed Aghazada told FIFA.com.
“It shows that after a very difficult period we are returning to normality.... Of course we expect a sold-out crowd.”
Football was not banned under the Taleban but the old Ghazi stadium in Kabul was a notorious venue for executions, stonings and mutilations.
Tuesday’s game — at the separate AFF ground in the city — will be followed on Thursday by the start of the second season of the Afghan Premier League, with eight teams competing to be champions.
Cricket, as well as football, has boomed in popularity since the fall of the Taleban. Cricketing minnows Afghanistan are set to take on Test nation Pakistan in a Twenty20 match on Dec. 8 in the United Arab Emirates.
Afghan fans abuzz over return of international football
Afghan fans abuzz over return of international football
‘20 years of engagement’ — inaugural Formula 4 championship success signals bright future for motorsport in Saudi Arabia
- Peter Thompson, founder of the Formula 4 Saudi Arabian Championship and Meritus.GP team principal, spoke about the Kingdom’s first motorsport academy and his hopes for the future
RIYADH: Last year welcomed the inaugural season of the FIA-certified Aramco Formula 4 Saudi Arabian Championship.
The series, which aims to provide the first step on the ladder towards Formula 1, was the culmination of years of collaboration between various investors and partners, led by the Kingdom’s first motorsport academy, Meritus.GP.
The championship’s mission?
To produce local driving talent, strengthen Saudi national race engineering capabilities and advance motorsport in alignment with the objectives of Saudi Vision 2030.
Five Saudi drivers emerged, with standout victories by Omar Al-Dereyaan and Faisal Al-Kabbani, both from Riyadh. Other graduates included race winner Oscar Wurz, who has since won the 2025 Central European Formula 4 Championship.
Arab News spoke with Peter Thompson, founder of Formula 4 Saudi Arabia and Meritus.GP, about the season’s success and his hopes for the future.
How did Meritus.GP build the Formula 4 Saudi Arabian Championship?
The Formula 4 Saudi Arabian Championship was the result of more than 20 years of engagement, exploration and groundwork in Saudi Arabia, in anticipation of a potential FIA-certified junior single-seater championship in the Kingdom.
Long before the first Formula 1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, we were on the ground exploring circuit development opportunities, assessing infrastructure readiness and evaluating whether Saudi Arabia could host a round of one of the Asian championships operated by the team. Throughout this period, we maintained long-standing relationships within Saudi motorsport circles including former Meritus.GP driver Raad Abduljawad and his brother Mohammed Abduljawad.
A defining moment came with the introduction of Formula 1 to Saudi Arabia. The Jeddah Corniche Circuit quickly became a visible symbol of this ambition, providing confidence that Saudi Arabia could support not only Formula One, but also a structured ladder of junior single-seater racing.
When did Meritus.GP receive formal institutional approval to begin Formula 4 Saudi Arabia?
More than three years of focused groundwork preceded the first race. During this period there was no formal government mandate, no guaranteed institutional backing and no commercial certainty that the project would proceed or be viable.
Then, in December 2022, a formal No-Objection Letter was issued by the Saudi Automobile and Motorcycle Federation, under the leadership of its then-CEO Sattam Al-Hozami, which allowed the project to progress from concept to reality.
Recognizing the benefits F4 would bring to the Kingdom, Mohammed Abduljawad became an investor in June 2023, and Formula 4 Saudi Arabia moved into full delivery mode.
What were the objectives of the proposal presented to Saudi Aramco?
The proposal positioned Aramco Formula 4 Saudi Arabia as a long-term national development platform aligned with Vision 2030.
Its objectives included creating a structured FIA driver pathway from grassroots to Formula One, as well as developing Saudi engineers, mechanics and officials in motorsports.
How did the championship support Saudi drivers, and what was the impact on local talent?
A core objective of Formula 4 Saudi Arabia was to create a genuine, fair and internationally credible environment in which Saudi racers could develop.
Saudi drivers competed alongside international peers under identical technical and sporting conditions, allowing performance and development to be measured objectively.
They ended up achieving race wins, podium finishes and measurable progress across the season, demonstrating that when provided with the right structure, Saudi talent can compete at international level.
How has Formula 4 Saudi Arabia engaged with Saudi education and skills development?
Education and skills transfer formed an important part of the championship’s wider mission.
During the season, Meritus.GP engineers and senior staff visited Saudi education and research institutions such as KAUST, Alfaisal University, University of Tabuk and the Japanese College in Jeddah to discuss career pathways in motorsport engineering, data analysis, and systems integration. These engagements were designed to connect academic study with real-world high-performance engineering environments.
What level of investment was required and how did you ensure equality of performance?
Approximately $6.5 million was invested prior to the first event.
Was there any pre-season training to help Saudi drivers prepare?
During August and September 2023 Saudi drivers participated in a structured pre-season academy program at Meritus.GP’s training facility in Sepang, Malaysia.
What role did sports psychology and driver well-being play in the championship?
Driver well-being and mental performance were treated as integral components of driver development.
Formula 4 Saudi Arabia appointed a dedicated sports psychologist to support drivers throughout the season, focusing on mental preparation, confidence building, coping strategies, performance consistency and adaptation to high-pressure racing environments.
