{"id":4054,"date":"2026-06-17T05:35:59","date_gmt":"2026-06-17T05:35:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=4054"},"modified":"2026-06-17T05:35:59","modified_gmt":"2026-06-17T05:35:59","slug":"sudans-young-women-return-to-international-soccer-as-war-and-taboos-linger","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=4054","title":{"rendered":"Sudan\u2019s young women return to international soccer as war and taboos linger"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Sudan\u2019s U-17 women\u2019s national team warms up before a soccer match against Comoros, during qualifiers for the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Olympics, in Casablanca, Morocco, Monday, June 8, 2026. (AP Photo) (STR\/AP)<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

CASABLANCA, Morocco \u2014 Their red jerseys stood out against the green pitch. Most were teenage girls. Some had fled war. Others had never played in an organized soccer league or set foot in a major stadium before.<\/p>

Read more Mike Trout homers as Angels shut out Diamondbacks 7-0<\/a><\/p>\n

Yet when they took the field at Larbi Zaouli Stadium in Casablanca, Morocco, they marked Sudan\u2019s<\/a> first appearance in international women\u2019s soccer since a civil war<\/a> erupted in a country where women\u2019s participation in sports has long been controversial.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy goal is to lift up soccer in my country,\u201d Nura Mohamed, the 17-year-old team captain, told The Associated Press.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a beautiful, unique feeling because, at the end of the day, I just love playing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sudan\u2019s under-17 women\u2019s national team traveled to Morocco last week for qualifying matches on the road to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics<\/a> . The inexperienced squad suffered heavy defeats against Comoros, conceding 30 goals in two matches. Many of the players broke down in tears after the final whistle in front of a dozen cheering fans.<\/p>\n

They faced an older, fitter, and more experienced opponent. Unable to assemble a senior women\u2019s squad in time, Sudan\u2019s soccer federation entered a younger team to avoid forfeiting its place in the qualifiers. They only started training weeks ago.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe difference between us and the others is huge. We cannot yet compete at the highest level,\u201d Burhan Tia, a veteran Sudanese soccer coach who oversees all of Sudan\u2019s women\u2019s national teams, said after the first match, a 17\u20130 defeat.<\/p>\n

\u201cComoros has many players competing in Europe, our team is mainly made up of schoolgirls.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sudan\u2019s women\u2019s soccer collapsed when civil war erupted in 2023<\/a> . For federation officials, debuting this young squad in Casablanca<\/a> after years of conflict marks an important step in keeping women\u2019s soccer alive in Sudan.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome traveled long distances just to attend training. Many are separated from their families, yet they continue to work hard and pursue their dream,\u201d Manal Ali Bushra, a businesswoman who heads the women\u2019s soccer committee, told the AP.<\/p>\n

To support that vision, Ali Bushra said the federation is working on infrastructure projects, including a planned sports city and the renovation of key stadiums in safer parts of the country. She declined to answer questions about the women\u2019s program budget and funds.<\/p>\n

Tia knew the magnitude of the challenge when he accepted the job of rebuilding a shattered team.<\/p>\n

\u201cFirst, I had to find girls who played soccer. Then, once I found girls who played, I had to make sure they were the right age,\u201d he said. \u201cThen I needed to convince their parents to let them miss classes for training.\u201d<\/p>\n

With the league suspended, his scouting trips took him to schools across Sudan and to neighboring Egypt, where many families had fled the war. He recruited 10 players from teams and academies in Cairo, with the rest drawn from Sudanese cities.<\/p>

Read more Ohtani hits 15th homer as Dodgers beat Rays 1-0<\/a><\/p>\n

Tia would have liked to recruit from conflict-hit areas like Darfur<\/a> or Kordofan<\/a> , a region known for producing Sudan\u2019s top athletes. But many girls had lost their identification documents, making it impossible to verify their ages under international regulations. The war has also shattered transportation, turning journeys between cities that once took hours into perilous trips lasting days.<\/p>\n

On the field, the players\u2019 lack of experience was evident. Several struggled with basic positioning, failing to hold the offside line or maintain tactical discipline. Throughout the matches, they repeatedly looked to the sidelines for instructions from the coach and his assistant.<\/p>\n

The United Nations has described the war in Sudan as the world\u2019s worst humanitarian crisis<\/a> . It began in 2023 when a power struggle between the military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces erupted into fighting marked by mass killings, rape and ethnic violence. More than 40,000 people have been killed, according to U.N. figures, and over 14 million have been displaced, with famine and disease spreading across parts of the country.<\/p>\n

The war halted every sports activity, including the women\u2019s soccer league, which was officially established after the 2019 progressive revolution that ousted President Omar al-Bashir<\/a> . His three-decade Islamist rule was marked by Public Order Laws that rights groups said restricted women\u2019s freedoms. Even after the revolution, prominent Sudanese preacher Abdulhay Yousif said the establishment of a women\u2019s football league was aimed at undermining religion.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe idea of women running, jumping, sweating, and even something as simple as their bodies being visible in motion, was seen by Bashir\u2019s Islamist regime as producing fitna, which in a Sudanese context was understood as sexual or moral chaos,\u201d Liv T\u00f8nnessen, a political scientist researching gender politics in Sudan, told the AP.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo when women step onto a soccer pitch, they are directly confronting that entire logic. They are not just present in a male-dominated sports arena, they are moving freely in it, on their own terms,\u201d T\u00f8nnessen, a former guest researcher in a women-only university in Sudan, added.<\/p>\n

Beyond institutional hurdles, players also faced a wave of sexist abuse online. On the national team\u2019s social media accounts, many commenters mocked them for big defeats. Others posted the phrase \u201cgo back to the kitchen,\u201d in multiple languages.<\/p>\n

While Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan\u2019s military government has allowed international soccer trips for teenage girls, the U.N. has documented sexual and gender-based violence<\/a> by the Sudanese Armed Forces, which he commands.<\/p>\n

T\u00f8nnessen sees the state backing as a calculated effort by the military to project legitimacy. By sponsoring the team, she said, the army attempts to signal that the state is functioning normally and to align itself with the spirit of the 2019 revolution.<\/p>\n

Hala Al-Karib, a prominent Sudanese women\u2019s rights activist, dismissed critics who say the team is being used to portray a more progressive image on women\u2019s rights.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe main challenge for me is a reform of the federation,\u201d she told the AP, citing a lack of investment in and support for women\u2019s soccer in Sudan.<\/p>\n

Back on the field in Casablanca, the politics, war and debate faded away, leaving only a group of teenagers chasing a ball.<\/p>

Read more Lionel Messi ties Klose\u2019s World Cup goals record with his first hat trick as Argentina tops Algeria<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sudan\u2019s under-17 women\u2019s national soccer team has made its first international appearance since civil war erupted in the country<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4052,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4054","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"\nSudan\u2019s young women return to international soccer as war and taboos linger - Moving Insider USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=4054\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Sudan\u2019s young women return to international soccer as war and taboos linger - 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