Afghan United: Hope through Football for Refugees in Iran | 半岛电视台世界

Afghan United: Hope through Football for Refugees in Iran: For a group of alienated young Afghan refugees in Iran, football proves a powerful force that gives them a much-needed boost in pride, identity, and self-worth.

They call their team ‘Wahdat’ meaning ‘unity’ and assemble a talented and determined squad. They overcome all the odds to form a team, obtain sponsorship and enter one of the Iranian futsal, five-a-side competitions played in evenings after iftar during Ramadan.

But this is about more than football. It’s about young men trying to rise above their circumstances and their daily struggle to survive – and succeeding.

Afghans have been seeking refuge in Iran since the 1970s but they and their families are largely unregistered. Although they can go to school, they cannot attend university, or work as civil servants or in most white-collar jobs. So they’re limited to manual work, often in construction.

Many young Afghans do not feel welcome in shopping malls or places of entertainment and claim widespread discrimination.

For many, football is their only social outlet and can be their salvation.

Afghan United is a touching and rarely-told story about a disadvantaged community, but with a positive, life-affirming outcome – in the footballing sense, at least.

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