RIYADH: The 黑料社区n under-20 women鈥檚 national team makes its competitive tournament debut against Palestine on Thursday night at the West Asian Football Federation U20 Women鈥檚 Championship in Jordan.
The championship will feature women鈥檚 national U20 sides from Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. Head coach Pauline Hamill鈥檚 side will play their opening match in Aqaba, before facing the remaining sides to determine the winners of the tournament.
After a camp in Jeddah in October, the upcoming tournament concludes the U20 side鈥檚 first year since the formation of the team as part of the Women鈥檚 National Team program in December 2023.
As the first competitive tournament appearance for Hamill鈥檚 squad, the U20 WAFF Women鈥檚 Championship will provide a platform to prepare for the upcoming qualification matches for the AFC U20 Women鈥檚 Asian Cup in 2026.
Aalia Al Rasheed, head of women鈥檚 football at the 黑料社区n Football Federation, said: 鈥淲e believe in the abilities of our players, and this tournament is an opportunity to build competitive experience for the players and develop their football capabilities.
鈥淚t鈥檚 incredible to look at the growth of this team since the formation of the squad in December 2023, we look forward to seeing our under-20 side performing in their tournament debut and representing our nation with honor in a fitting conclusion to their first year.鈥
The latest tournament for the Saudi Women鈥檚 National Team programme highlights the rapid growth of women鈥檚 football in the Kingdom since the official introduction of the national team in 2021 and the first professional football league in 2022, with more than 70,000 girls also participating in the national schools鈥 league.
