Girls scoring major goals

World Cup fever in Lyari is not the same, but young girls are keeping the tradition thriving

Today is the day. Today is the day when the biggest sporting event in the whole world, FIFA World Cup, kicks off in Qatar.

Young female athletes in an old locality of Karachi, Lyari, are all excited to see the thrilling action and support their favourite teams and players during the campaign.

“Neymar and Brazil,” said 12-year-old Maryam when Bol News asked her about her favourite team and player in the World Cup as she dribbled the ball away to shoot it across to the right winger. While her confidence and athletic vigour hid the challenges she faced in life otherwise, the terribly damaged second-hand cleats she was wearing in the game betrayed it all.

A close look at her attire would tell the on-looker that the colourful Manchester United shirt was too pre-loved but her passion for football in the face of her humble background was nevertheless that of a relentless sportswoman.

“I come here on Fridays after school and on Saturdays,” she said, adding that on other days she gives tuition to younger school-going kids to aid the family economy.

Maryam is not the only girl that has to bargain a lot so that she can simply do what boys of her age are encouraged to do in Lyari to keep them away from drugs that are so rampant in the locality’s streets.

Another young football player, Aisha, who plays as a winger, idolises Egypt’s Mohamed Salah.

“I love Mohamed Salah and I love Liverpool,” said Aisha while mentioning her on her FIFA World Cup 2022 favourites, just after beating a team moments back.

The 11-year-old has a little less fluency in football news but no less passion for football on the pitch. She does not have a television at her home, nor does she have a smartphone. Still, the budding footballer has somehow managed to stay up to date with the world, especially with the universe of football. She knows much about club football and the fact that women play this and other sports all around the globe.

“My mother lets me play football even when my brother thinks the sport is not for women,” she shared. “I think since my brother is not as aware of the world as I am, he doesn’t know women have international and club-level teams,” Aisha said, adding that her elder brother dropped out of school earlier this year because he had no interest in studies and he loiters around in the streets.

Yasir Sarbazi, a social activist, who contributes to girls’ football activities in Lyari maintained that the stories of these girls should be told to the world ahead of the mega football tournament.

Meanwhile, Sarbazi observed that this time around, the fever of the FIFA World Cup is not how it used to be, say, a decade back. Upon inquiring why he’d make such a confident comment, he replied that people are getting tired of the status quo here.

“The oblivion doesn’t help Lyari people anymore, as it did in the past,” he stated. “There’s an increasing problem of drug addiction and of joblessness among the youth, so passions and hobbies can take a backseat for now,” he said.

“Do you see walls being painted in every street with their favourite football team flag or player?” He rhetorically asked, pointing at dirty Lyari walls where chewed beetles were spat.

On the brighter side, this time he is seeing young girls filling this void and increasingly playing the game, which is the identity of the area, keeping the tradition thriving.

He acknowledged the fact that these young girls cannot celebrate the global football event as their male counterparts, but still, they are keeping the vibe alive. “Well they cannot organise [celebrations] as much as boys and cannot arrange for painting and decoration of the streets, they are playing on the field regularly and increasingly, that is for sure.”

Mehreen Ahmed, a girls’ football tournament organiser, believes this sport is helping girls in playing their part in society and this upcoming festival in Qatar is likely to pave their way.

“Despite the defeating hardships and shrinking opportunities, Lyari girls are turning towards football, among other avenues to claim their part in society and this football World Cup is helping them do just that,” she opined.

Meanwhile, these talented young individuals are also looking to make the most out of this opportunity.

Some girls are also stitching football shirts and flags and earning from it, while others are volunteering in decorating the streets with flags side by side with the boys.

“If you look at it, Lyari girls are doing it all: sports, arts, higher education, startups and freelance. All that without the fear of spiralling into any stigmatising habits like drugs, unlike their counterparts,” said Mehreen, suggesting that things might be changing for the better.