Recognition of Afghan’s women football team and prize for female environmental activists

The Goldman Environmental Prize is arguably the world’s most prestigious award for environmental activism – and this year it recognises the increasingly important role women play in environmental protection. Each year, the prize is awarded to one person from each of six global regions. This year’s recipients are Iroro Tanshi from Nigeria, Borim Kim from South Korea, Sarah Finch from the United Kingdom, Theonila Roka Matbob from Papua New Guinea, Alannah Acaq Hurley from the United States, and Yuvelis Morales Blanco from Colombia. This marks the first time since the prize was established in 1989 that the award, worth $ 200,000, has gone exclusively to women.

Afghanistan’s official national team

Although FIFA has recently done little to present itself as a credible defender of human rights, it set a precedent in April with a landmark decision: it recognised a team of Afghan women refugees as Afghanistan’s official national team – for the first time without the consent of the responsible member association. The team had already competed in Morocco in 2025 as part of the FIFA United Women’s Series, but at the time only under the name “Afghan Women United” without full recognition. With its new status, the squad can now qualify for major tournaments such as the World Cup, the Asian Cup, and the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. 

In our June issue of D+C we are looking at the political implications of some impressive stories football has to offer – stay tuned!

We regularly update you on more positive developments in our Good News section.

The D+C editorial team
euz.editor@dandc.eu