Cricket Scotland has announced that it will not schedule any fixtures against Afghanistan outside ICC events, in response to the Taliban government’s treatment of women and girls. The decision comes just days before the second edition of the ICC Women’s Emerging Nations Trophy 2026, which will be held in the United Arab Emirates from 12 to 25 November. Scotland will therefore meet Afghanistan only when the ICC requires it, including at ICC events and warm-up matches.
The policy follows a board review of Cricket Scotland’s engagement with the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB), launched this summer. It was prompted by an ACB request to use training facilities in Scotland ahead of Afghanistan men’s tour of Ireland, which was declined because of its late timing and the lack of a suitable venue, as well as by an ACB approach regarding the potential availability of Scottish players for the planned Afghanistan Premier League T20 (APL).
Cricket Scotland said it would not “proactively schedule” cricket against Afghanistan “unless there is a material change in the circumstances surrounding Afghanistan women’s cricket and wider human rights considerations.” The board’s position echoes the approaches already adopted by Cricket Australia and the England and Wales Cricket Board.
Scotland have not played Afghanistan in a full international match since the 2021 T20 World Cup. They have, however, faced them in warm-up matches before the last two T20 World Cups, in 2024 and 2026. Under the new policy, those encounters will continue only within the ICC’s event framework.
The announcement lands at a significant moment for the women’s game. The ICC Women’s Emerging Nations Trophy has expanded from eight teams in its inaugural edition in Thailand to 10 teams for the 2026 tournament. Five Full Member nations, Ireland, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Bangladesh and Pakistan, will join five Associate nations: Papua New Guinea, Scotland, the United Arab Emirates, the Netherlands and Thailand.
For Scotland, the tournament offers a major opportunity to test themselves against a broader international field, while their decision on Afghanistan makes clear that sporting engagement will not be treated as separate from the country’s human-rights record. Cricket Scotland’s stance is directed at institutional fixtures and scheduling, rather than at individual players’ contractual rights.
“Cricket Scotland will comply with its obligations as set out in its contracts with its players,” the board said in a statement. “If an NOC is issued, participation by the player/s must not be interpreted as an endorsement by Cricket Scotland of the current Afghan regime or its policies.” Scotland’s contracted men’s and women’s players were informed of the new policy on Monday.
Afghanistan were granted ICC Full Member status in 2017 despite not meeting the requirement to fund a women’s national team and development structures. Since the Taliban regained power in 2021, the situation for women and girls in Afghanistan has deteriorated sharply, with experts describing the restrictions as “gender apartheid.”
The issue has also taken on a competitive dimension. An Afghanistan Refugee Women’s XI, primarily based in Australia, toured England this summer alongside the women’s T20 World Cup. Earlier this year, the ICC put in place a roadmap under which the team could potentially compete in its events by 2030.
Cricket Scotland’s move therefore adds another governing body to the growing group unwilling to conduct routine bilateral cricket with Afghanistan while women and girls remain excluded from the sport and public life. For the Emerging Nations Trophy, it also frames Scotland’s participation in a wider conversation: about who gets to play, who is denied the chance, and what international cricket is prepared to do about it.
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