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Can global pressure save women’s sports in Afghanistan?

The doomed future of women’s sports in Afghanistan may not be as black and white as the Taliban’s deputy head of the cultural commission, Ahmadullah Wasiq, initially indicated in comments made earlier this month. Wasiq’s interview with Australian broadcaster SBS was in regard to an upcoming men’s cricket Test match scheduled for late November between Australia and Afghanistan. It would be the first ever Test between the two nations and many wondered if it would continue as planned given Afghanistan’s recent upheaval. As the Taliban take-over culminated, party officials assured Cricket Australia and the Afghanistan Cricket Board that the historic match would not be derailed. Wasiq told SBS that the Taliban wanted “to reassure all our players, the cricket board officials, and colleagues that they can continue their games without any fear or intimidation, and call on their colleagues to come and play with confidence, and to also get prepared for domestic and upcoming international games.”

In the follow up interview that made global headlines, it became clear that when Wasiq said “all our players,” he was strictly referring to male players. 

“I don’t think women will be allowed to play cricket because it is not necessary that women should play cricket. In cricket, they might face a situation where their face and body will not be covered. Islam does not allow women to be seen like this. It is the media era, and there will be photos and videos, and then people watch it. Islam and the Islamic Emirate [Afghanistan] do not allow women to play cricket or play the kind of sports where they get exposed.”

No one familiar with the Taliban’s interpretation of Islam was surprised by these comments. Female athletes have been among the many groups striving to flee the country, with several stating they now fear for their lives. Those who couldn’t get out have been advised by teammates outside the country to erase all evidence of their sporting lives, even to “burn their jerseys.”

Immediately after Wasiq indicated the women’s cricket team would now be banned, people began wondering how national and international cricket organizations would respond. Would Cricket Australia boycott the scheduled test? Would teams pull out of the men’s T20 World Cup scheduled for October if the Afghan team is permitted to enter as planned?

In 2017, the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) became a full-fledged member of the International Cricket Council (ICC). One requirement of ICC membership is to create and maintain an active national women’s cricket team. But as of 2018, female cricketers in Afghanistan reported ACB officials had done almost nothing to support a women’s team and didn’t believe women should play. Even if they personally supported the idea of a women’s team, officials claimed they received threats from Taliban members warning against its development. Without providing clarity on what changed, the ACB’s 2020 annual report claims they made good on the ICC requirement and signed the top 25 Afghan female cricketers to professional contracts after holding a series of development camps throughout the country.

If the Taliban bans the nascent women’s cricket team, ACB may lose its ICC membership, which would be a huge blow for the men’s team on the international level. 

An ICC spokesperson told SBS News that the body will discuss the matter at its next board meeting. 

“The ICC has been monitoring the changing situation in Afghanistan and is concerned to note recent media reports that women will no longer be allowed to play cricket. This and the impact it will have on the continued development of the game will be discussed by the ICC Board at its next meeting.”

Whereas the ICC may opt to extend exceptions of its gender equality requirements to Afghanistan, as they previously did when granting ACB full membership status before its women’s team was fully active, Cricket Australia has indicated it will not be similarly generous

“If recent media reports that women’s cricket will not be supported in Afghanistan are substantiated, Cricket Australia would have no alternative but to not host Afghanistan for the proposed Test Match due to be played in Hobart.” 

Women’s cricket has a strong support system and following in Australia. In early 2020, Australia’s women’s team came close to breaking the attendance record for a women’s sporting event at their ICC Women’s T20 World Cup final vs. India, with 86,174 fans watching in person. 

With Australia drawing a hard line in the sand, the leaders of the ACB are now in a highly motivated position to convince the Taliban to permit their women’s program to continue at a level that satisfies global ideals. Interestingly, ACB’s Chairman, Azizullah Fazli, was quick to downplay Wasiq’s harsh statements and to temper concerns over the safety of their female players.

 “The women’s cricket coach, Diana Barakzai, and her players are all safe and living in their home country. Many countries have asked them to leave Afghanistan. But they have not left Afghanistan, and at the moment, they are in their places.” 

He also didn’t waiver in his assuredness that the women’s team would be allowed to persist stating, “We will give you our clear position on how we will allow women to play cricket. Very soon, we will give you good news on how we will proceed.”

It’s hard to adopt Fazli’s optimism, especially considering one of ACB’s two female board members, Hasina Safi, has gone into hiding now that the Taliban dissolved her position as Minister of Women’s Affairs and transformed her office building into a ministry for “the propagation of virtue and the prevention of vice.” Fazli’s assurance that ACB’s female cricketers are safe and content to stay in Afghanistan also starkly contradicts reports from the BBC that members of the team have been threatened by the Taliban and are fearing for their lives. 

There is the possibility that the Taliban is fully willing to sacrifice Afghanistan’s standing in men’s international sports in order to adhere to their strict religious beliefs about women’s propriety. But Wasiq also recently backpedaled after the strong reactions to his initial statements, clarifying a few days later that his comments were not an official announcement of Taliban policy. 

“The policies [on women’s sports] might be announced in the future,” Wasiq said. “What I had said in the past was my opinion based on the country’s cultural and security situation.”

The social and political power of sport is on full display as any hope of a future for women’s sports in Taliban-led Afghanistan now hinges on pressure from global sporting authorities and tact from existing Afghan sports federations. The fact that the development and support of women’s teams is a requirement of membership in organizations like the ICC is heartening. The tragedy is that women hold almost zero leadership positions in the parties at the table here. And the stakes could not be higher for women in Afghanistan.

Gotham, Portland Gear Up for Concacaf W Champions Cup Semifinals

Gotham goalie Cassie Miller makes a save during a 2024 Concacaf W Champions Cup group-stage match.
Gotham played Tigres UANL to a 4-4 draw in last October’s Champions Cup group stage match. (Ira L. Black - Corbis/Getty Images)

The battle for continental soccer glory continues on Wednesday, as the Portland Thorns and Gotham FC land in Mexico for the 2024/25 Concacaf W Champions Cup semifinals.

After advancing past last fall's group-stage play, both NWSL sides now face Liga MX standouts in the knockout rounds with a ticket to Saturday's Champions Cup Final on the line.

The back-to-back semifinals will take place on Wednesday in Nuevo León, Mexico, with live coverage streaming on Paramount+:

  • Club América vs. Gotham FC, 7:30 PM ET: Both the Bats and this year's Liga MX regular season champions are looking to bounce back, as Gotham attempts to shake off a recent NWSL skid while América seeks redemption after stumbling in their season-ending league tournament earlier this month.
  • Tigres UANL vs. Portland Thorns, 10:30 PM ET: Expect a high-energy clash between the three-time NWSL champs and six-time Liga MX title-winners, with the Thorns coming off a five-match undefeated streak and the Tigres shooting to impress in front of their home crowd at Estadio Universitario.

It's not just hardware and continental bragging rights on the line, though.

Saturday's 2024/25 Concacaf W Champions Cup victors will also earn automatic qualification into FIFA's 2026 Champions Cup — a six-team tournament between confederation winners — and the first-ever Club World Cup, which will kick off in 2028.

National Seeds Fall as NCAA Softball Storms into Super Regionals

Ole Miss pitcher Aliyah Binford winds up during a 2025 NCAA softball postseason game.
Ole Miss is one of four unseeded teams to make the 2025 NCAA softball Super Regionals. (Mady Mertens-Imagn Images)

After a first-round weekend of pitcher's duels and red-hot bats, the 2025 NCAA softball tournament's best-of-three Super Regionals field is set — and it's missing four of the 16 national seeds.

No. 10 LSU fell on Saturday after two upset losses to unseeded SE Louisiana, before Sunday saw No. 13 Arizona and No. 14 Duke follow suit while unseeded Ole Miss, Georgia, and Nebraska all punched second-round tickets.

Eventually ousting SE Louisiana in the winners' bracket to advance to their first Super Regionals in 11 years, the Huskers rode in on the back of two-time All-American pitcher Jordy Bahl, with the Oklahoma transfer throwing 12 innings and hitting four home runs across Nebraska's three Regional games.

Elsewhere, unseeded Liberty booked a program-first trip to the Supers by eliminating top-seed Texas A&M — the first time the NCAA bracket's overall No. 1 seed failed to advance from Regionals.

Should they similarly bounce No. 16 Oregon this weekend, Liberty will become just the second mid-major team to make the Women's College World Series (WCWS) since 2014, joining James Madison's 2021 Cinderella run.

Rounding out the rest of the Super Regional round's 16 teams are No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 3 Florida, No. 4 Arkansas, No. 5 Florida State, No. 6 Texas, No. 7 Tennessee, and No. 8 South Carolina, as well as No. 9 UCLA, No. 11 Clemson, No. 12 Texas Tech, No. 15 Alabama, and the aforementioned No. 16 Ducks.

Oklahoma's Ailana Agbayani celebrates her three-run homer with her team during the 2025 NCAA softball tournament.
Four-time defending champs Oklahoma will face Alabama in this weekend's Super Regionals. (BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

Super Regional weekend to feature blockbuster matchups

The 16 contenders will battle head-to-head for eight available WCWS berths, with the four-time defending champion Sooners now leading the field.

To advance, however, Oklahoma must first outlast Alabama, a team with which the Sooners have a long, contentious postseason history — the pair have faced off in five of the last 12 NCAA tournaments.

After Oklahoma bounced Alabama from the 2019 WCWS semifinals — the last time the pair squared off before becoming SEC rivals — the Tide enacted revenge by narrowly beating the Sooners in April's conference play, teeing up a tense weekend Super Regional series.

After narrowly missing this weekend's hosting rights as the No. 9 seed — UCLA's lowest seeding since 2016 — the Bruins proved why they are the sport's winningest program, run-ruling ever Regional game while allowing just two runs all weekend.

The 12-time champions will now travel to Gamecock territory, where No. 8 South Carolina will try to boost the Bruins and book their first WCWS ticket in 28 years.

Powerhouses still rule the diamond, but parity has never been higher in college softball, with this year's NCAA tournament already delivering whiplash results.

Texas Tech pitcher NiJaree Canady celebrates a 2025 NCAA softball postseason win.
2024 National Player of the Year NiJaree Canady led Texas Tech to a program-first Super Regional. (Nathan Giese/Avalanche-Journal/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

How to watch the 2025 NCAA softball Super Regionals

The best-of three NCAA softball Super Regionals kick off on Thursday and run through the weekend, with possible winner-take-all clashes finalizing the WCWS slate on Sunday.

First games are as follows:

  • No. 12 Texas Tech at No. 5 Florida State, 7 PM ET on Thursday (ESPN2)
  • No. 11 Clemson at No. 6 Texas, 9 PM ET on Thursday (ESPN2)
  • Georgia at No. 3 Florida, 11 AM ET on Friday (ESPN2)
  • No. 9 UCLA at No. 8 South Carolina, 1 PM ET on Friday (ESPN2)
  • No. 15 Alabama at No. 2 Oklahoma, 5 PM ET on Friday (ESPN2)
  • Nebraska at No. 7 Tennessee, 7 PM ET on Friday (ESPN2)
  • Ole Miss at No. 4 Arkansas, 8 PM ET on Friday (ESPNU)
  • Liberty at No. 16 Oregon, 10 PM ET on Friday (ESPNU)

PWHL Details 2025/26 Expansion Plan, Outlines Draft Rules

A close-up of the PWHL logo patch on the sleeve of a jersey.
The PWHL will expand to eight teams in the league's third season. (Rich Graessle/Getty Images)

With the 2025 PWHL Finals in full swing and new franchises on the horizon, the league rolled out a detailed expansion plan to build its two new teams on Monday.

The expansion process will see 24 current PWHL players — four from each of the six founding teams — join either Vancouver or Seattle next month.

To be eligible for selection, athletes must be either under contract or have rights held by a current team for the 2025/26 season. 

Each original team can protect three eligible athletes at the outset, with squads reserving the right to protect one additional player should the incoming clubs select two players off the same roster.

In the lead-up to June 9th's expansion draft, Vancouver and Seattle will have five days to sign up to five unprotected players each.

After that window closes, Seattle and Vancouver will increase their rosters to a required total of 12 players via expansion draft selections, with the number of picks for each team determined by how many athletes the new franchises choose to sign.

Finally, the West Coast squads will then complete their 23-athlete lineups alongside the other six teams during the PWHL's June 24th entry draft.

With such a broad unprotected player pool, about half of the PWHL's current athletes — including some of its brightest stars — will be up for grabs, ensuring a very different landscape when the league takes the ice for its third season.

USA Hockey Star Hilary Knight Says 2026 Olympics Will Be Her Last

USA hockey forward Hilary Knight skates with the puck.
Team USA captain Hilary Knight will make her international exit after the 2026 Olympics. (Steven Bisig/Imagn Images)


Team USA hockey titan Hilary Knight is hanging up her international skates, with the record-10-time world champion announcing Tuesday that the 2026 Winter Games in Milan, Italy, will be her fifth and final Olympic run.

"It's time," Knight told USA Today. "I'm at peace. I just have this feeling that it’s time."

Going out on her own terms is top-of-mind for the USA hockey great, with Knight acknowledging "That is such a privilege that only a handful of competitors get."

Making her national team debut at 17, the now-35-year-old is one of the sport's most decorated athletes, winning Olympic gold in 2018 to complement three silver medals in 2010, 2014, and 2022.

Just last month, Knight led the US to victory at the IIHF Women's World Championship, and currently sits as the tournament's all-time leader in goals (67), points (120), and assists (50).

Despite her impending step off the international ice, Knight, who currently captains the PWHL's Boston Fleet, plans to continue playing for the second-year league — a pro venture she helped bring to life in 2023.

"I understood what the sport gave me and I wanted to give that to other people," Knight said. "Obviously, there's tons of work that always needs to be done, but I think we now have a career path."
 
 
 
 

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