Pakistan national football team

Early years (1950s)

Shortly after the creation of Pakistan in 1947, the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) was created, and Muhammad Ali Jinnah became its first Patron-in-Chief.^[8] PFF received recognition from FIFA in early 1948.^[8]

Pakistan visited Iran and Iraq for its international debut in October 1950.^[9] Captained by the goalkeeper Osman Jan, Pakistan faced Iran in their first official international game in Tehran, losing 5–1 during the Shah of Iran's birthday celebrations.^[8] Reportedly the Pakistan national team played the match barefoot, which was the norm back in South Asia.^[8][10] Pakistan also engaged in unofficial friendly matches during the tour, defeating Tehran's Taj FC (now Esteghlal FC) with a 6–1 scoreline and drew 2–2 against a team from Isfahan.^[8][10] In Iraq, due to the Iraqi FA's inability to gather a full national team, Pakistan played an unofficial friendly against the club Haris al-Maliki resulting in a 1–1 draw.^[9][8]

Pakistan's next international outing came in the 1952 Colombo Cup where the team captained by Abdul Wahid Durrani played its first match against India after victories over Ceylon and Burma, which ended in a goalless draw and emerged as joint winners of the tournament after finishing with the same points in the table.^[11]

During the 1950s, Pakistan played internationally in the following Colombo Cup editions which were played in Burma in 1953, India in 1954, then East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) in 1955, and the Asian Games in Philippines in 1954 and in Japan in 1958.^[8][12]

Masood Fakhri had most notably scored a hat-trick in a side captained by Moideen Kutty, and became the first player from Pakistan to do so as his national team thumped Singapore 6–2 in a group match at the 1954 Asian Games in Manila, Philippines.^[13]

The Pakistan Football Federation became one of the 13 founding members of the Asian Football Confederation on May 8, 1954.^[14] Initially scheduled to play against Israel in the inaugural 1956 AFC Asian Cup qualifiers, the team withdrew along with Afghanistan due to reluctance to host the Israeli team.^[15]

However, in 1959, Pakistan finally decided to participate in the 1960 Asian Cup qualifiers hosted by India in Kerala. Under the captainship of Qayyum Ali Changezi, Pakistan faced Iran, India and Israel twice each in the qualifiers.^[8] Although Israel managed to qualify by topping the group, Pakistan achieved a memorable victory over Iran by 4–1 and secure a draw against Israel, finishing in third place in the group, ahead of hosts India but behind Iran.^[16]

Early 1960s and 1970s

Pakistan had participated in various friendly tournaments in the early 1960s, with the Merdeka Cup hosted in Malaysia after the country first participation in 1960.^[12] Pakistan recorded some famous victories including a 7–0 walloping of Thailand,^[17] and a 3–1 win over the Asian powerhouses Japan.^[17] In the 1962 Merdeka Tournament, Pakistan ended runner up after falling to Singapore by 1–2 in the final.^[18]

The era also saw one of the finest players to ever grace the field in Pakistan football history, such as Abdul Ghafoor, nicknamed the "Pakistani Pelé" and "Black Pearl of Pakistan",^[19][20] Musa Ghazi, Muhammad Umer Baloch, Turab Ali, Qadir Bakhsh, Ayub Dar, among others.

During the China national team tour in Pakistan in 1963,^[12] the first test in Dhaka in East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) ended in a 0–0 tie.^[21] The second match in Peshawar ended in a 3–2 victory for Pakistan,^[21] with the third fixture in Lahore ending in another 1–1 draw.^[21] The final fourth match in Karachi ended in a 2–0 defeat for Pakistan.^[21][12] The 1964 Summer Olympics qualification the same year included a 4–1 loss in Iran and a 1–0 win in Pakistan. Pakistan visited China the next year for an unofficial test match ending in a 2–0 victory.^[12]

It was three years before Pakistan played another competitive fixture, when they played in the first RDC Cup and finished third. In 1967, they played a four-match series of friendlies against Saudi Arabia, resulting in three 2–2 draws, with the last match equalised by 1–1.^[12][22] Later in the year Pakistan lost their Asian Cup qualifiers against Burma and Cambodia and drew their final match against India. They then hosted the second RDC Cup and finished third, which included the 4–7 defeat to Turkey. In 1969, they travelled to Iran to take part in a friendly tournament, in which they had a 2–1 win against Iraq and a record 7–0 defeat by Iran.^[23]

Despite the game's growth in the 1960s, Pakistan did not actively participate in the Asian Games football tournaments held in 1962, 1966, and 1970 due to financial constraints.^[12] The World Cup qualifiers followed a similar pattern, with Pakistan missing crucial matches because of a lack of interest from the federation and insufficient government support.^[12] Nonetheless, Pakistan did take part in the qualifiers for the 1964 Olympic Games. This involved a two-legged match against Iran in November 1963, resulting in a 4–1 loss in Iran and a 1–0 victory in Pakistan.

As a result of the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War, East Pakistan became The People's Republic of Bangladesh and consequently the Pakistani team lost the right to call upon Bengali players from the Dhaka League. In the early 1970s the national side's participation was restricted to the RCD Cup, 1974 Asian Games, the inaugural Quaid-e-Azam International Cup held in Karachi in 1976, and a single friendly against South Korea in 1978. The most notable result in this period was a 2–2 draw against Turkey.^[24]

Rise and fall (1980–1990)

In the King's Cup in 1982, Pakistan secured a goalless draw against Indonesia, the team's first clean sheet since 1962. After a loss to Thailand, they gained a 3–2 victory against Malaysia and although they lost a close game against China, they were able to win 1–0 in their final game against Singapore.^[12]

Pakistan hosted the Quaid-e-Azam International Cup involving Iran, Bangladesh, Oman and Nepal in 1982. The Green Shirts started off with a 2–1 win over Bangladesh. They then lost to Iran, but came back and beat Nepal 2–0. The last game against Oman ended nil-nil and Pakistan ended the tournament as runners-up. However, in 1984, the national team lost 4 out of 5 games in the Asian Cup qualifiers, the only victory coming against North Yemen 4–1.

The national team hosted another tournament in 1985, this time inviting North Korea, Indonesia, Bangladesh and Nepal. A goalless draw against the North Koreans boosted the side, and they beat Nepal 1–0. However, losses in the final two games against Bangladesh and Indonesia meant they were again runners up. In the South Asian Games, Pakistan ended fourth after losing a penalty shoot out to Nepal.

In the 1986 Asian Games, Pakistan lost all their games. However, a year later the side was more successful at the 1987 South Asian Games, winning the bronze medal match against Bangladesh 1–0. In 1988, after losing the Asian Cup qualifiers, Pakistan began with their first ever participation for the 1990 FIFA World Cup qualifiers for Italy in January and February, ending up unsuccessful. The national team bounced back, when several months later they took Gold at the 1989 South Asian Games, beating Bangladesh 1–0 in the final, from a solitary goal by Haji Abdul Sattar in the dying minutes of the game.^[25]

Decline (1990s–2003)

Pakistan had another early exit in the Asian Games, losing all three games in 1990. In the 1991 South Asian Games however, Pakistan beat the Maldives in the final 2–0 to win their second Gold, from goals scored by Qazi Ashfaq and Mohammad Nauman Khan.^[26] Later in the year the first SAFF Cup took place in Lahore in 1993, and the national team finished fourth, but at the 1993 South Asian Games, they were unable to get past the group stage.

In 1995, Pakistan went out of the SAFF Cup group stage on goal difference. Between 1996 and 1997, the team lost all their Asian Cup and World Cup qualifying games. Pakistan came third in the 1997 SAFF Cup, thanks to a 1–0 victory over Sri Lanka in the third place playoff. The 1999 SAFF Cup saw Pakistan finish bottom of their group, and Pakistan also failed to get out of the group stage of the final South Asian Games to hold full internationals.^[25]

Pakistan were unable to win any of their 2000 Asian Cup qualifiers. The following year Pakistan achieved their first point in the 2002 World Cup qualification, thanks to a hat-trick by Gohar Zaman in a 3–3 draw against Sri Lanka, but all other matches ended in defeat.^[27][28]

In 2002, Pakistan played in an unsuccessful four match series against Sri Lanka. At the 2003 SAFF Cup, under the inspiration of the attacking midfielder Sarfraz Rasool, Pakistan stunned India, Sri Lanka and Afghanistan in three victories as they reached the semi-finals only to fall short against Maldives by 1-0.^[25] Pakistan finished fourth, losing 2–1 in extra time to India in the third place playoff.^[25] Later in the year, Pakistan won their first Asian Cup qualifier with a 3–0 over Macao, but still were unable to qualify. They rounded off the year with defeats to Kyrgyzstan in the World Cup qualifiers.

New set-up and changes (2004–2015)

2004 saw changes in Pakistan football, with a new administration in place by this time and a new national league up and running. A victory and a draw against India in a three match series, the final match ending 3–0 in favour to the Green Shirts,^[29][30] followed by the reach in the semi-finals of the 2005 SAFF Cup, losing against defending champion Bangladesh by 0–1 margin.

The Pakistan team lost their first two Asian Cup qualifiers in 2006, in between which they took part in the first AFC Challenge Cup 2006. They failed to get past the group stage, but beat Kyrgyzstan 1–0.^[31] Back at the Asian Cup qualifiers, they lost their remaining fixtures. In the 2010 World Cup qualifiers in 2007, they fell to a heavy defeat by the Asian champions Iraq, losing 7–0 on aggregate across the two legs after drawing 0–0 in the second round.^[32] In 2008, Pakistan travelled to Nepal for two friendlies before taking on the AFC Challenge Cup qualifiers. Although they won against Chinese Taipei 2–1 in the first match, and beat Guam in a record-equalling 9–2 win in the final match, other results, including a 7–1 defeat to Sri Lanka, saw them again fail to reach the finals.

In the SAFF Championship 2008, Pakistan failed to go beyond the group stages, losing to Maldives 3–0, India 2–1 and Nepal 4–1, which signalled the end of Akhtar Mohiuddin's tenure as head coach.^[33] After Mohiuddin's departure, Austrian-Hungarian coach George Kottan was hired and the veteran tactician took the team to the SAFF Championship 2009. Despite calling upon foreign players such as Adnan Ahmed, Shabir Khan, Amjad Iqbal, Atif Bashir and Reis Ashraf, the side were defeated 1–0 by Sri Lanka, before drawing 0–0 with Bangladesh as former Manchester United star Adnan missed a late penalty to seal a win. Pakistan won against Bhutan 7–0 in their last game.^[34]

Kottan was soon sacked in February 2010, Pakistan had no senior games during the entire calendar year but saw the appointment of Tottenham Hotspur legend Graham Roberts for the U-23 Team. For the AFC Challenge Cup 2012 qualifiers in 2011, KRL FC coach Tariq Lutfi was called up once more and failed to deliver emphatically. Defeats such as the 3–0 against Turkmenistan and 3–1 against India meant that the side were already out of the qualifiers despite beating Chinese Taipei by 2–0. Later in the 2014 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers in July, Bangladesh thoroughly beat Pakistan 3–0 in Dhaka, before earning a 0–0 draw in Lahore a few days later.

That saw the end of Lutfi's reign, with Serbian coach Zaviša Milosavljević taking over in November 2011 right before the SAFF Championship 2011.^[35] Despite having little time to influence the team, Zavisa managed to hold Bangladesh 0–0, Maldives 0–0 and Nepal 1–1 in the India-hosted SAFF Championship 2011. However, they were unable to progress into the semi-finals and returned home.

2012's sole game was witnessed in November against Singapore, who thrashed Pakistan 4–0 at home. Pakistan started 2013 well, winning two games against Nepal with identical 1–0 margins thanks to the brilliance of Hassan Bashir.^[36][37] A 1–1 draw with Maldives followed, but with congested fixtures Pakistan ended up losing the last game 3–0 in Male.

Pakistan national team in Malé during a friendly against Maldives in 2013.

Pakistan then played the 2014 AFC Challenge Cup qualification in Bishkek, losing out 1–0 to Tajikistan in injury-time. Pakistan also lost 1–0 against the Kyrgyzstan after scoring in the 1st minute, but with Hassan Bashir and returning Kaleemullah Pakistan comfortably beat Macau 2–0.^[38]

Pakistan played a friendly against Afghanistan in August, losing 3–0 emphatically without their foreign-based players.^[39] Coach Zaviša Milosavljević was controversially sacked and replaced by Bahrain's Mohammad Al-Shamlan, who acted as a coaching consultant to Shahzad Anwar in the 2013 SAFF Championship.^[40]

The Shaheens lost their first game 1–0 to India after an own-goal from Samar Ishaq. Against hosts Nepal, Hassan Bashir scored an early goal, only to see 15-year-old Bimal Gharti Magar level things in injury-time. However, Pakistan beat Bangladesh 2–1 but failed to advance to the semi-finals.^[41]

Pakistan did not qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, being eliminated by Bangladesh in the first round of the AFC qualifying section, losing 3–0 on aggregate.

For Pakistan's campaign for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, they were to face Yemen in Round 1 in the AFC qualifying section. In the first match, Pakistan lost 3–1.^[42] For the second match, Pakistan drew 0–0, eliminating Pakistan from the tournament on aggregate.^[43]

Inactivity and FIFA suspension (2015–2017)

Pakistan was suspended from all football activities by FIFA on 10 October 2017,^[44] after the controversial tenure of the PFF president and politician Makhdoom Syed Faisal Saleh Hayat, widely described as a "feudal lord of Pakistani football".^[45][46]

For three years since March 2015, the top division of the Pakistan Premier League remained suspended because of the crisis created due to his actions, along with the men's senior team,^[46] who remained suspended from any international competition, and FIFA rankings of the senior team had slumped from 168 in 2003 to the lowest 201 in 2017.^[46][47][48]

Post suspension (2018–2020)

FIFA restored membership of PFF on 13 March 2018.^[49] With the 2018 SAFF Cup in September, Pakistan football team had very little time to prepare. PFF announced the signing of new Brazilian coach José Antonio Nogueira and started camps in Lahore.^[46] The team played friendlies in Bahrain with their premier clubs from mid of July till end of it. Pakistan lost 1, drew 1 and won 2 matches in Bahrain.

Pakistan went to Bangladesh to take part in SAFF Cup which started in September, 2018 which was their first FIFA recognized tournament after a span of 3 years.^[46] Pakistani descent footballer Adnan Mohammad wasn't issued visa by Bengali authorities to participate in the competition. Pakistan played its first match of the event against Nepal (40 ranks higher than the former then) on 4 September 2018 which ended in a 2–1 win.^[50] Pakistan lost its next match to hosts Bangladesh on 6 September 2018 by 1–0 after conceding a late goal. Green shirts played their final group game against Bhutan on 8 September 2018 which ended in a 3–0 win and sealed their place in semis after 13 years.^[51] Pakistan faced arch rivals India in semi final on 12 September 2018 and were ultimately knocked out by 3–1. After first half being goalless, Manvir Singh's brace and Summit Passi's header allowed the Blues to go 3–0 ahead. Hassan Bashir late consolation goal decreased the margin by 1 goal.^[52] Star footballer Kaleemullah Khan wasn't a part of these events due to his disputes with PFF authorities, as the former spoke out on the federation's incompetence which ultimately led him not to be selected for both events. PFF banned the Pakistani players to speak about this matter on any platform.^[53][54][55]

After the SAFF Cup, Pakistan negotiated with the Palestine Football Association for a friendly. It was initially reported that the match will be played in Lahore, Pakistan on 15 November 2018 but Palestine decided to host the event afterwards. Due to visa issues, Pakistan team couldn't fly to Palestine on the desired date. So, the match was played on 16 November in which Shaheens lost by 2–1. Hassan Bashir scored the only goal for Pakistan in first 30 minutes which was assisted by debutant Adnan Mohammad.

Disappointment would soon strike again as Pakistan missed out the 2022 FIFA World Cup and 2023 AFC Asian Cup at the same time, when Pakistan lost to Cambodia twice in the first round and was eliminated.^[56]

FIFA suspension (2021–2022)

Pakistan were once again suspended from all football activities by FIFA on 7 April 2021.^[57][58] The suspension was lifted on 29 June 2022.^[59]

Comeback to International Football (2022–present)

Pakistan made their comeback by playing a friendly match against Nepal in November 2022, losing 0–1 in a late minute goal.^[60] They played a second friendly match against Maldives in March 2023 losing 0–1.^[61]

Pakistan subsequently took part in the 2023 Mauritius Four Nations Cup featuring Mauritius, Kenya, Djibouti and the 2023 SAFF Championship alongside India, Kuwait and Nepal in the group stages, losing all six matches and finishing last in their group in each competition.^[62]

On 27 July 2023, the draw for the first round of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification took place in which Pakistan were drawn once again against Cambodia, followed by the appointment of the English coach Stephen Constantine.^[63] In the first leg in Phnom Penh, Pakistan contested in a goalless 0–0 draw.^[64] Pakistan won their second leg beating Cambodia 1–0 in Islamabad, due to a magnificent goal by former QPR player, Harun Hamid, recording their first-ever victory in World Cup qualifiers in their first fixture at home for eight years, and qualifying for the second round for the first time.^[65]

Following the victory in Islamabad, the Shaheens were drawn in a group with Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Tajikistan. Being the 193rd ranked team, Pakistan were the lowest-ranked team in the qualifiers.^[66] As predicted, Pakistan would start with a 4–0 thumping by Saudi Arabia on November 16th, whose reputation was enhanced with the famous 2–1 comeback win over champion-to-be Argentina in the earlier 2022 FIFA World Cup.^[67] On November 21th, Pakistan again lost 1–6 to Tajikistan at home, however it was the most attended football match in Pakistan, with over 22,500 spectators.^[68]

Kit

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Pakistan national football team kits.

The Pakistan national team's home kit has always been a green shirt and white shorts. The colours are derived from the flag of Pakistan which is a green field with a white crescent moon and five-rayed star at its centre, and a vertical white stripe at the hoist side.^[69] The away shirt colour has changed several times. The national team has used white shirt with white shorts or white shirt with green shorts. Historically, white shirt with green shorts is the most often used colour combination.

Kit suppliers

Kit supplier	Period
Unknown	1950–2010
Vision[70]	2010–2013
Forward[71]	2013–2015
None[note 1]	2015–2017
Joshila[72]	2018–2021
None[note 2]	2021–2022
Denim Studio	2022–2023
Gym Armour	2023–present

Home stadiums

For the first fifty years of their existence, Pakistan played their home matches all around the country. Built in the 1950s and renovated in the 1960s by the order of the president of Pakistan Ayub Khan, the KMC Stadium in Karachi is one of the oldest football stadiums in the country.^[73]

Jinnah Sports Stadium in Islamabad (left) and the Punjab Stadium in Lahore

Pakistan plays majority of their home matches at the Jinnah Sports Stadium in Islamabad, where they won the 1989 and 2004 South Asian Games,^[74] though by the year 2003 this had largely settled down to having the Punjab Stadium in Lahore as one of the primary venues, with Karachi's People's Football Stadium used on occasions where the Punjab Stadium was unavailable for home matches. The Pakistan Football Federation has its headquarters near Punjab stadium, which hosted most of the matches for the AFC President's Cup 2007. Muhammad Essa was the first player to score an international goal at this venue, against India in June 2005.^[30]

The Jinnah Sports Stadium is the largest football stadium in Pakistan with a capacity of over 45,000, whereas the People's Football Stadium is second largest with 40,000.

Rivalries

Pakistan's arch-rivals are India. Pakistan has won five games, there have been eight draws and sixteen wins for India among the 29 games played so far.^[75] In 3 November 1953, they also played a friendly after finishing the 1953 Colombo Cup, where Pakistan earned their first victory over their rivals, with Moideen Kutty scoring the games only goal.^[76]

Pakistan also share rivalries with Afghanistan. Pakistan have dominated the match-ups, winning three of these games, while Afghanistan have won one game.^[77] Contests against Pakistan generate much enthusiasm amongst Afghan football fans on account of their mutual relations and have been referred to as a "rivalry",^[78] although the interest in Pakistan toward the rivalry in general is more muted.^[79]

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

  Win  Draw  Loss  Fixture

2023

Mauritius  v  Pakistan

11 June 2023 2023 Mauritius Four Nations Cup	Mauritius	3–0	Pakistan	Saint Pierre, Mauritius
15:30	Villeneuve 53' Nazira 63' Moosa 71' (o.g.)	Report		Stadium: Stade de Cote d'Or

Pakistan  v  Kenya

14 June 2023 2023 Mauritius Four Nations Cup	Pakistan	0–1	Kenya	Saint Pierre, Mauritius
18:30		Report	Moses 18'	Stadium: Stade de Cote d'Or

Djibouti  v  Pakistan

17 June 2023 2023 Mauritius Four Nations Cup	Djibouti	3–1	Pakistan	Saint Pierre, Mauritius
18:00	Elabeh 10' Dadzie 73' Akinbinu 86'	Report	Hayat 85'	Stadium: Stade de Cote d'Or

India  v  Pakistan

21 June 2023 2023 SAFF Championship	India	4–0	Pakistan	Bengaluru, India
19:30 UTC+5:30	Chhetri 10', 16' (pen.), 74' (pen.) Udanta 81'	Report		Stadium: Sree Kanteerava Stadium Attendance: 22,860 Referee: Prajwol Chhetri (Nepal)

Pakistan  v  Kuwait

24 June 2023 2023 SAFF Championship	Pakistan	0–4	Kuwait	Bengaluru, India
15:30 UTC+5:30			Al-Enezi 10' Al-Faneeni 17', 45+1' Al-Rasheedi 69'	Stadium: Sree Kanteerava Stadium Attendance: 309 Referee: Pema Tshewang (Bhutan)

Nepal    v  Pakistan

27 June 2023 2023 SAFF Championship	Nepal	1–0	Pakistan	Bengaluru, India
15:30 UTC+5:30	Chaudhary 80'			Stadium: Sree Kanteerava Stadium Attendance: 250 Referee: Sinan Hussain (Maldives)

Cambodia  v  Pakistan

12 October 2023 2026 World Cup qualification	Cambodia	0–0	Pakistan	Phnom Penh, Cambodia
19:00 UTC+7		Report		Stadium: Morodok Techo National Stadium Attendance: 11,718 Referee: Baraa Aisha (Palestine)

Pakistan  v  Cambodia

17 October 2023 2026 World Cup qualification	Pakistan	1–0 (1–0 agg.)	Cambodia	Islamabad, Pakistan
14:00 UTC+5	Hamid 68'	Report		Stadium: Jinnah Sports Stadium Attendance: 13,000[80] Referee: Feras Taweel (Syria)

Saudi Arabia  v  Pakistan

16 November 2023 2026 World Cup qualification	Saudi Arabia	4–0	Pakistan	Hofuf, Saudi Arabia
19:30 UTC+3	Al-Shehri 6', 48' (pen.) Ghareeb 90+1' Radif 90+6'	Report		Stadium: Prince Abdullah bin Jalawi Stadium Attendance: 11,150 Referee: Hanna Hattab (Syria)

Pakistan  v  Tajikistan

21 November 2023 2026 World Cup qualification	Pakistan	1–6	Tajikistan	Islamabad, Pakistan
15:00 UTC+5	Nabi 21'	Report	Kamolov 9', 66' Soirov 13' Umarbayev 26' Panjshanbe 45' Samiev 90'	Stadium: Jinnah Sports Stadium Attendance: 18,316 Referee: Yusuke Araki (Japan)

2024

Pakistan  v  Jordan

21 March 2024 2026 World Cup qualification	Pakistan	0–3	Jordan	Islamabad, Pakistan
15:00 UTC+5		Report	Al-Taamari 2', 86' Olwan 9'	Stadium: Jinnah Sports Stadium Attendance: 9,625 Referee: Rustam Lutfullin (Uzbekistan)

Jordan  v  Pakistan

26 March 2024 2026 World Cup qualification	Jordan	7–0	Pakistan	Amman, Jordan
21:00 UTC+3	Al-Taamari 15', 62', 79' Al-Naimat 28' Al-Rosan 52' Olwan 75' Abu Zraiq 83'	Report		Stadium: Amman International Stadium Attendance: 14,695 Referee: Nivon Robesh (Sri Lanka)

Pakistan  v  Saudi Arabia

6 June 2024 2026 World Cup qualification	Pakistan	v	Saudi Arabia	Islamabad, Pakistan
--:-- UTC+5		Report		Stadium: Jinnah Sports Stadium

Tajikistan  v  Pakistan

11 June 2024 2026 World Cup qualification	Tajikistan	v	Pakistan	Dushanbe, Tajikistan
--:-- UTC+5		Report		Stadium: Pamir Stadium

Current personnel

Position	Name[81]
Head coach	Stephen Constantine
Goalkeeper coach	Rogerio Ramos Noman Ibrahim
Fitness coach	Claudio Altieri
Performance Analyst	Trishan Patel[82]
Conditioning coach	Muhammad Ali Khan

Coaching history

Current squad

• The following players were named in the squad for the 2026 WCQ R2 against  Jordan on 21 and 26 March 2024.^[86]

Caps and goals are correct 26 March 2024, after the match against Jordan.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Yousuf Butt	(1989-10-18) 18 October 1989 (age 34)	27	0	VB 1968
20	1GK	Saqib Hanif	(1994-04-23) 23 April 1994 (age 30)	8	0	Victory Sports
22	1GK	Hassan Ali	(2003-02-23) 23 February 2003 (age 21)	0	0	Lyallpur
	1GK	Abdul Basit Ghafoor	(1990-07-01) 1 July 1990 (age 33)	0	0	New Radiant
2	2DF	Mohammad Umar Hayat	(1996-10-22) 22 October 1996 (age 27)	17	1	WAPDA
3	2DF	Haseeb Khan	(2000-04-04) 4 April 2000 (age 24)	3	0	PAF
4	2DF	Abdullah Iqbal	(2002-07-27) 27 July 2002 (age 21)	12	0	B.93
5	2DF	Easah Suliman (Captain)	(1998-01-26) 26 January 1998 (age 26)	9	0	Sumgayit
6	2DF	Mohammad Fazal	(2002-05-29) 29 May 2002 (age 21)	0	0	Nordic United
12	2DF	Muhammad Sohail	(2001-09-04) 4 September 2001 (age 22)	2	0	KRL
14	2DF	Muhammad Sadam	(2005-02-01) 1 February 2005 (age 19)	3	0	POPO FC
15	2DF	Mamoon Moosa Khan	(2000-11-28) 28 November 2000 (age 23)	9	0	POPO FC
23	2DF	Muhammad Adeel		0	0	Muslim Hands FC
7	3MF	Ali Uzair	(1996-10-14) 14 October 1996 (age 27)	15	0	WAPDA
8	3MF	Rahis Nabi	(1999-04-16) 16 April 1999 (age 25)	14	1	Digenis Morphou
16	3MF	Rajab Ali	(1997-03-06) 6 March 1997 (age 27)	2	0	KRL
18	3MF	Harun Hamid	(2003-11-10) 10 November 2003 (age 20)	13	1	St Albans City
21	3MF	Alamgir Ghazi	(2001-05-09) 9 May 2001 (age 22)	12	0	WAPDA
9	4FW	Imran Kayani	(2001-12-24) 24 December 2001 (age 22)	4	0	Whitehawk
10	4FW	Waleed Khan	(2004-12-08) 8 December 2004 (age 19)	11	0	POPO FC
11	4FW	Adeel Younas	(2006-03-23) 23 March 2006 (age 18)	1	0	POPO FC
13	4FW	Fareed Ullah	(2001-01-01) 1 January 2001 (age 23)	6	0	Muslim FC
17	4FW	Shayak Dost	(2002-05-01) 1 May 2002 (age 21)	13	0	Abu Muslim
19	4FW	Abdul Arshad	(2003-02-26) 26 February 2003 (age 21)	8	0	HIK

Recent call-ups

The following players have also been called up to the Pakistan squad within the last twelve months.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Salman ul Haq	(2001-06-10) 10 June 2001 (age 22)	0	0	SA Gardens	2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers R2
GK	Usman Ali	(2004-06-10) 10 June 2004 (age 19)	0	0	KRL	2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers R1
DF	Junaid Shah	(2000-10-09) 9 October 2000 (age 23)	4	0	Wahidy	2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers R2
DF	Hamza Munir	(2003-07-31) 31 July 2003 (age 20)	0	0	SA Gardens	2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers R2
DF	Mohib Ullah	(2005-05-23) 23 May 2005 (age 18)	1	0	Karachi United	2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers R2
DF	Ali Khan Niazi	(2000-12-14) 14 December 2000 (age 23)	4	0	KRL	2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers R1
DF	Abdullah Shah	(2001-02-06) 6 February 2001 (age 23)	4	0	Abu Muslim	2023 SAFF Championship
DF	Sardar Wali	(1998-11-28) 28 November 1998 (age 25)	0	0	PACA	2023 SAFF Championship
DF	Muhammad Sufyan	(2001-09-21) 21 September 2001 (age 22)	4	0	WAPDA	2023 SAFF Championship
DF	Umar Saeed	(1997-02-20) 20 February 1997 (age 27)	0	0	SA Gardens	Four Nations Cup
MF	Umair Ali		1	0	Pakistan Army	Four Nations Cup
FW	Muhammad Waheed	(2002-10-15) 15 October 2002 (age 21)	8	0	KRL	2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers R2
FW	Moin Ahmed	(2003-11-28) 28 November 2003 (age 20)	3	0	KRL	2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers R2
FW	Otis Khan (Vice-captain)	(1995-09-05) 5 September 1995 (age 28)	8	0	Hartlepool United	2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers R2INJ
FW	Adnan Mohammad	(1996-07-02) 2 July 1996 (age 27)	9	0	VB 1968	2023 SAFF Championship
FW	Hassan Bashir	(1987-01-07) 7 January 1987 (age 37)	29	9	VB 1968	2023 SAFF Championship
PRE Preliminary squad / standby RET Retired from the national team INJ Player injuries OTH Player withdrew from squad due to non-injury issue

As of 26 March 2024^[87]

Players in bold are still active with Pakistan.

Most appearances

NB Exact figures of players before 1989 and 1999 are not yet known and yet to be researched. Additionally, player appearances are also missing in the 2000 AFC Asian Cup qualification, 2002 friendlies against Sri Lanka, 2005 SAFF Gold Cup and 2006 friendly against Palestine in the primary source and yet to be updated.

Top goalscorers

NB Exact figures of players before 1989 and 1999 are not yet known and yet to be researched.

Captains

FIFA World Cup

FIFA World Cup										Qualification
Year	Result	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	F	A		Pld	W	D*	L	F	A
1930 to 1938	Part of  United Kingdom									Part of  United Kingdom
1950 to 1986	Did not enter									Did not enter
1990	Did not qualify									4	0	0	4	1	12
1994										8	0	0	8	2	36
1998										4	0	0	4	3	22
2002										6	0	1	5	5	29
2006										2	0	0	2	0	6
2010										2	0	1	1	0	7
2014										2	0	1	1	0	3
2018										2	0	1	1	1	3
2022										2	0	0	2	1	4
2026										6	1	1	4	2	20
2030	To be determined									To be determined
2034
Total		0/19	—	—	—	—	—			38	1	5	32	15	142

AFC Asian Cup

AFC Asian Cup										AFC Asian Cup qualification
Year	Result	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA		Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA
1956	Withdrew									Withdrew
1960	Did not qualify									6	2	1	3	8	10
1964	Withdrew									Withdrew
1968	Did not qualify									3	0	1	2	1	4
1972	Withdrew									Withdrew
1976
1980
1984	Did not qualify									4	1	0	3	4	14
1988										4	0	0	4	1	12
1992										2	0	0	2	0	9
1996										2	0	0	2	0	7
2000										4	0	0	4	0	16
2004										2	1	0	1	3	3
2007										8	0	1	7	4	23
2011	Did not enter									Did not enter
2015
2019	Did not qualify									2	0	1	1	1	3
2023										2	0	0	2	1	4
2027	To be determined									To be determined
Total		0/18	—	—	—	—	—	—		39	4	4	31	23	105

AFC Challenge Cup

The AFC Challenge Cup was held every two years from 2006 through 2014.

AFC Challenge Cup										AFC Challenge Cup qualification
Year	Result	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA		Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA
2006	Group stage	10th	3	1	1	1	3	4		No qualification
2008	Did not qualify									3	2	0	1	12	10
2010										3	1	2	0	9	3
2012										3	1	0	2	3	6
2014										3	1	0	2	2	2
Total	Group stage	1/5	3	1	1	1	3	4		12	5	2	5	26	21

Asian Games

Football at the Asian Games has been an under-23 tournament since 2002.

Football at the Asian Games
Year	Result	M	W	D	L	GF	GA
1951	Did not enter
1954	Round 1	2	1	0	1	7	4
1958	Round 1	2	0	1	1	2	4
1962	Did not enter
1966
1970
1974	Round 1	3	1	0	2	6	13
1978	Did not enter
1982
1986	Round 1	4	0	0	4	2	15
1990	Round 1	3	0	0	3	1	16
1994	Did not enter
1998
2002–present	See Pakistan national under-23 football team
Total	5/13	14	2	1	11	18	52

South Asian Games

Football at the South Asian Games has been an under-23 tournament since 2004.

South Asian Games
Year	Result	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA
1984	Did not enter
1985	Fourth Place	3	1	1	1	6	5
1987	Third Place	3	2	1	0	2	0
1989	Champions	3	2	1	0	5	2
1991	Champions	3	2	1	0	3	0
1993	Group stage	2	0	1	1	3	4
1995	Withdrew
1999	Group stage	3	1	0	2	5	9
2004–present	See Pakistan national under-23 football team
Total	6/8	17	8	5	4	24	20

SAFF Championship

SAFF Championship
Year	Result	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA
1993	Fourth place	4th	3	0	2	1	2	6
1995	Group stage	5th	2	1	0	1	1	2
1997	Third place	3rd	4	2	0	2	3	4
1999	Group stage	6th	2	0	0	2	0	6
2003	Fourth place	4th	5	3	0	2	5	4
2005	Semi-finals	4th	4	2	1	1	2	1
2008	Group stage	8th	3	0	0	3	2	9
2009	Group stage	5th	3	1	1	1	7	1
2011	Group stage	5th	3	0	3	0	1	1
2013	Group stage	5th	3	1	1	1	3	3
2015	Withdrew
2018	Semi-finals	4th	4	2	0	2	6	5
2021	Suspended
2023	Group stage	8th	3	0	0	3	0	9
Total	Third place	12/14	39	12	8	19	32	51

ECO Cup

ECO Cup
Year	Result	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA
1965	Third place	2	0	0	2	2	7
1967	Third place	2	0	0	2	4	9
1969	Third place	2	0	0	2	4	8
1970	Third place	2	0	0	2	1	10
1974	Third place	2	0	1	1	3	4
1993	7th place	2	0	0	2	0	9
Total	6/6	12	0	1	11	14	47

Source:^[88]

• Football in Pakistan
  • Women's football in Pakistan
• Pakistan national under-23 football team
• Pakistan national under-20 football team
• Pakistan national under-17 football team
• Pakistan Football Federation

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