The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), in partnership with Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and the MCC Foundation, will host the Afghanistan Refugee Women’s Team on a landmark tour of England beginning 22 June 2026, a short but significant event amid the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026, which England and Wales are staging from 12 June to 5 July.
The tour combines high‑quality training and T20 fixtures with unique opportunities to witness the pinnacle of the global game: the squad will attend the World Cup final at Lord’s. Beyond the on‑field activity, this programme is a powerful statement about inclusion, resilience and cricket’s role in protecting women’s right to play.
This is more than a series of practice matches. After the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021 and the subsequent removal of women from public life and sport in Afghanistan, many contracted female players were forced to flee. Most have since resettled in Australia and continued to pursue cricket and rebuild their lives. The ECB’s invitation, delivered alongside MCC and the MCC Foundation, gives those players a rare chance to reunite as a team in an environment that supports their development, visibility and belonging within the global cricket family.
The itinerary, starting 22 June, is designed to maximise learning and exposure: accredited coaching and training sessions, T20 matches, and cultural and educational experiences culminating in attendance at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup final at Lord’s on 5th July 2026. Much of the programme will be delivered in partnership with MCC and MCC Foundation, organisations with deep roots in cricket’s history and an increasing focus on community impact and inclusion.
Clare Connor, ECB Deputy CEO and Managing Director of England Women, encapsulated the programme’s spirit: “Since being displaced from Afghanistan in 2021, these players have shown extraordinary resilience in continuing their cricket journeys, in incredibly challenging circumstances. We have worked with It’s Game On to build an itinerary and a set of experiences that we hope will be enjoyable and memorable.
“We are also delighted that the squad will attend the final of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026. Cricket has a responsibility to stand for inclusion and opportunity, and we are proud to be hosting this tour and supporting the players in deepening their connection to the game.”
That connection matters in concrete ways. For players who have had their sporting pathways severed, access to professional coaching, match exposure and the chance to observe elite standards, live at the World Cup final, accelerates skill development and restores confidence. More broadly, the tour signals to displaced and marginalised female athletes worldwide that cricket’s governing bodies and institutions can be allies in safeguarding participation.
It’s Game On, the sport consultancy co‑founded by Mel Jones and Emma Staples, and Dr Catherine Orway were central to supporting the safe relocation of these players following 2021. Their ongoing work demonstrates how expert advocacy, coordinated safeguarding and targeted programming can yield durable opportunities for athletes uprooted by conflict.
As Mel Jones observed, “This tour is a major step forward, but also highlights how much work remains. These players have shown extraordinary courage and commitment to the game, despite everything that has been taken from them. They deserve more opportunities like this; they deserve to be recognised as part of the global cricket community. Moments like this matter, but we need to see plans for sustained and meaningful action beyond this year.”
The tour, therefore, sits at the intersection of immediate sporting need and longer‑term strategic advocacy: it provides high‑quality short‑term provision while underscoring the necessity of sustained pathways, funding and representation for displaced athletes.
This summer’s tour dovetails with the 10th edition of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026, hosted across England and Wales from 12 June to 5 July. The tournament has expanded to a 12‑team format from the previous 10, broadening the global platform for women’s cricket and increasing competitive opportunities. The World Cup’s growth amplifies the significance of the Afghan Refugee Women’s Team attending the final: they will join a deeper, more diverse global celebration of the women’s game at precisely the moment the sport is expanding its reach.
The announcement is a beginning. For the promise of this initiative to fully translate into opportunity, stakeholders will need to plan for what follows. The voices of the players, amplified by partners and media, will be crucial in shaping those next steps.
The ECB, MCC, and MCC Foundation’s hosting of the Afghanistan Refugee Women’s Team is timely, tangible and resonant. Arriving in England from 22 June, the squad will train, play and witness the apex of the sport at a World Cup final, experiences that blend professional development with profound symbolic inclusion.
The broader challenge now is to ensure that this is not a one‑off moment but the beginning of sustained, meaningful pathways for displaced women cricketers across the world.
(Quotes sourced from ECB Press Release)
Loves all things female cricket