For the girls of Mumbra, playing football on the squares is so much more than just a game

(c) foto: Dinesh Parab

If you are a Muslim girl from a poor neighbourhood in the state of Maharashtra, India, your older brother decides whether you can go outside after school. Traditionally, girls stay at home. Activist Sabah Khan is trying to break through the gender norms that prevent adolescent girls and young women from realising their dreams through football.

After completing her master's degree in social work, Sabah returned to Mumbra and started an NGO that organises football training for girls and young women from the neighbourhood. What does football have to do with gender norms? According to a BBC study, only one in three Indian women participate in sports, a consequence of a deeply rooted norm that considers women's participation in sports to be unfeminine.

Sabah not only lets girls play football, but also tries to challenge the stereotype of “Muslim girls as passive and submissive”. At the same time, she wants to bridge the gap between Hindu and Muslim neighbours, which is wide in India today.

Girls from disadvantaged neighbourhoods want to be part of the new Indian middle class and pursue careers. But all too often, girls are unable to make independent decisions about what they do, often even when they turn 18. Once married, their mother-in-law then has a say in what they can and cannot do. Sabah gives them more freedom and uses football to show them that they too can take action in their neighbourhood and bring about lasting change for their own daughters.

The girls play in public squares where normally only boys play football. This was unheard of and often led to aggressive looks and catcalling. Once on the field, the girls learn to play as a team, develop leadership skills and tactics. In addition to sport, the organisation also introduces them to the Indian constitution, the principles of citizenship and their rights. The girls engage in dialogue with local community leaders and policymakers in their neighbourhood. In this way, they see what their role as “change agents” can mean for the neighbourhood and for strengthening local solidarity.

This led to results. The girls organised a petition to ask the municipality for their own football pitch. It worked, and now 500 girls play football in Mumbra, “openly and freely”, in public spaces. Over the years, the organisation has trained thousands of girls, increasing their assertiveness and autonomy, not only on the football pitch but also off it. They are putting the rights of girls and women on the map in the Mumbai region and challenging the social norms that previously kept girls indoors. For the girls of Mumbra, football on the squares is not just a game.