Farkhunda Muhtaj

Farkhunda Muhtaj is a professional soccer player and social activist. She is the captain of the Afghanistan Women’s National Soccer Team and competes for Fortuna Sittard in the Dutch Eredivise. In 2021 after the Taliban came into power, she led the evacuation of over 300 Afghans including the Afghanistan Youth National Soccer Team to Portugal.

Her parents were refugees forced to leave Afghanistan the first time the Taliban came into power in the 90s. Muhtaj’s family immigrated to Canada at the age of two. She grew up having lived and learned experiences of the difficulties refugees and immigrants are faced with while rebuilding their lives.

She is the co-founder of Scarborough Simbas, a non-profit organization that uses sport to help ease the settlement journey of refugees and newcomers to Canada, the Director of Culture and Conscience at the Respect Group, a humanitarian ambassador for Penny Appeal Canada and UNHCR Netherlands, and sits on the board of League 1 Ontario’s women’s soccer committee.

Muhtaj was one of thirty female leaders in soccer invited by FIFA and UEFA to participate in the 2022 Women in Football Leadership Development Programme in Switzerland. Muhtaj is committed to developing and implementing sustainable projects locally and globally to help advance equitable and diverse opportunities for refugees and newcomers, women and girls, and underserved communities to feel empowered and become impactful leaders. She is a member of Common Goal, a charitable organization where she donates 1% of her salary toward anti-racism education and actively engages in tackling social challenges. She is also an INKEY Global Change Maker and Fund Leader where she allocates funding globally to support transformational youth-led social impact initiatives.

Muhtaj was recognized as a Top 30 YorkU Alumni under 30 in 2022 and by famous football clubs such as FC Barcelona for her active dedication to social justice. She has also been the recipient of many accolades including the Canadian Premier League Game Changer Award, the Community Leadership Award by the Office of the Mayor in the City of Clarington, the Women Who Inspire Award by the Canadian Council of Muslim Women, and the Community Involvement Award by the Canadian Afghan Sport Association among others.

Muhtaj earned two degrees from York University; a BSc degree in Kinesiology and Health Sciences (2019) and a B.Ed. degree in Science and Physical Education (2021). She captained York University’s Women’s Soccer Team where she was a USPORT Academic All-Canadian, OUA First-Team All-Star and an OUA Gold Medalist. Two documentary films were created on highlighting the incredibly dangerous and heroic evacuation mission Muhtaj lead of the Afghan Youth Women’s National Team players from Afghanistan to Portugal. The film "Ayenda" by MSNBC was premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2023 and the film "We are Ayenda" by WhatsApp is available on Amazon Prime.