Afghan fighters pull no punches after Taliban ban on professional MMA

Afghan mixed martial arts fighters take part in a training session at a club on the outskirts of Kabul

Hissing like a quiver of angry cobras, a group of young Afghan mixed martial arts (MMA) athletes shadow box in a Kabul club despite the uncertain future of the sport after a Taliban government ban on professional competitions.

Late last month, the Taliban authorities banned the sport in professional competition calling it too “violent” and “problematic with respect to sharia”, in the latest restriction based on their interpretation of Islamic law implemented since they swept to power in 2021.

“Initially, when a friend told me that MMA has been banned in Afghanistan, I didn’t believe but when I reached the club, all my friends were gutted, and obviously I was too,” 21-year-old Khalil Rahman told AFP.

Rahman had ambitions to “raise Afghanistan’s flag high in the world”, through international MMA competitions, but now that professional bouts have been cancelled, he and other trainees at the well-equipped private gym in eastern Kabul worry their days in the octagonal fighting cage are numbered.

Fighters train in a well-equipped gym near the capital, Kabul

For now, training and amateur competitions have continued with protective gear, leaving MMA enthusiasts in limbo, uncertain of the exact rules in the order from the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice.

The state sporting authority was not immediately available for comment, but a source from the organisation confirmed to AFP that the order text “was vague about what actually has been banned and the general directorate of sports and physical education has requested clarity”.

– ‘It made me sad’ –

But Rahman is already thinking of trying to leave the country to follow his pro MMA dreams abroad.

His fellow trainee Mohammad Waseem Qayumi is holding out hope he can keep up with the sport at an amateur level.

Afghan fighters are keeping up their training despite the ban by Taliban authorities

“Initially, it made me sad when MMA was banned,” he said, sweating after punching and kicking through the training session.

“Then I thought if free fighting (without safety gear) is banned, that’s OK, I will put on headgear and other safety equipment and will continue to freestyle with my fighting.”

Qayumi was inspired by the growth of the sport in the country in recent years, as he saw Afghan athletes taking part in international competitions on popular MMA platforms like the US Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).

A number of non-Afghan Muslim fighters have won world titles and enormous purses on the international stage, including Russians Khabib Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhachev.

“The people of Afghanistan are fighters, and this sport is also a fight, where you can kick and punch freely, that’s why people like this sport,” Qayumi said.

– Women banned from sport –

The Taliban government has not been recognised by any other state, complicating sports’ teams participation in international arenas, but athletes from other countries have recently been welcomed to Afghanistan for competition.

The authorities have also effectively banned women from sports and male athletes have been ordered in a new morality law to cover their bodies from the navel to the knee.

Mixed martial arts fighting is very popular among Afghan men, who have few other outlets for sport

Bilal Fazli, who trains in a club based in a dark basement in the southwest of the Afghan capital told AFP he was disappointed to see an immediate drop in the number of trainees coming to the club after the ban.

“All the boys were frightened… The government could have done a better job by working on other important things such as helping the poor than banning sport,” the 21-year-old said before punching his trainer’s gloves hard in frustration.

“I don’t know what to do, we don’t have jobs and if we can’t even have the sports of our liking, maybe we will leave this country.”