Single vote puts woman footballers’ careers at stake

ISLAMABAD: The matter of single vote in the elections of Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) has made it impossible for the leading woman footballers to continue pursuing their careers.

With Wapda and Army forced to stay away from the National Club Championship getting underway from July 21 at different centres, the things are getting tougher for all those woman footballers who have been associated with these two departments. Both Army and Wapda, which have kept women football alive even in the toughest of times, will not be seen in action in the club championship.

Malika-e-Noor, former Pakistan football team captain, has announced retirement from international soccer over what she called growing politics in sports. “Probably the hardest decision that I have made in my life. I was not mentally ready as I thought I would give some more years to the team but the scenario has changed and it feels I must retire from international football,” she said.

There are few other woman footballers belonging to these departments who are thinking on the same lines and would be seen leaving departments or leaving the game altogether.

‘The News’ has learnt that both the departments are registered as clubs in the PFF Connect Programme the same way their men’s teams are registered. Surprisingly, men’s teams regularly play club events but the PFF is not allowing women from Wapda and Army to compete on the pretext that these departments do not fall in the club category.

Wapda and Army have regular teams and are considered as the best around. Had these teams been included, there was all the possibility that one of these would have gone to win the championship and thus getting a chance to cast vote in the elections as women champions.

Those who have been working against spirit of the game of soccer and have delayed the PFF’s elections for years are behind all this calculation. Their aim is to keep these departments away with the fear of ultimate election. For woman players representing these departments it is a catch-22 situation. These footballers have already been denied NOC by these departments which mean that they cannot represent any other club too. One of the clubs is willing to make these women part of the team to ensure a title and a right to vote in the elections. However, the non-participation of Wapda and Army and the refusal to give NOC to represent any other team is likely to ruin players’ progress. A plot is being hatched to help one of the clubs to win the championship and to secure the right to vote.

When a PFF official was contacted, he said that Wapda and Army are departments and cannot compete in the club championship. When asked why the departments are there in the men’s club competitions, the official had no genuine reason to narrate. “We cannot allow departments to compete in women club championship,” he said.