President Dr. Arif Alvi met with Pakistan’s men’s and women’s national football teams, as well as members of the Normalization Committee (NC), to discuss the state of football in the country.

President Alvi commended the women’s team for their impressive performance at the Four-Nation Tournament in Saudi Arabia, where they were runners-up.

He emphasized the need for the players to work hard to make Pakistan proud with their performances and called for the adoption of international standards to promote the game in the country.

President Alvi also expressed his disappointment with the internal politics of the Pakistan Football Federation, which has affected the performance of the national teams.

He urged the FIFA Normalization Committee to continue its efforts to resolve football-related issues in the country.

Chairman NC Haroon Ahmed Malik revealed that over seven million people play football in Pakistan, and efforts are being made to improve the federation’s system.

He also announced that 4,600 clubs have been registered from 163 districts of the country, and the process of document verification and physical scrutiny will be completed in due course.

The NC Chairman further stated that the men’s team will participate in the FIFA World Cup 2026 Qualifiers, while the women’s team will participate in the qualifiers for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

The meeting concluded with an agreement to strengthen links with international partners and public-private partnerships for the uplift of football in the country.