United Arab Emirates women's national football team

This article is about the women's team. For the men's team, see United Arab Emirates national football team.

United Arab Emirates

Association	UAEFA
Confederation	AFC (Asia)
Sub-confederation	WAFF (West Asia)
Head coach	Vera Pauw
Captain	Areej Al Hammadi
FIFA code	UAE
First colours Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	120 3 (11 December 2025) [1]
Highest	70 (March 2016)
Lowest	120 (December 2025)
First international
United Arab Emirates 4–2 Palestine   (Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; 20 February 2010) [2]
Biggest win
United Arab Emirates 7–0 Kuwait   (Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; 24 February 2010)
Biggest defeat
Slovakia 9–0 United Arab Emirates   (Senec, Slovakia; 5 August 2015)
WAFF Championship
Appearances	3 (first in 2010 )
Best result	Champions (2010, 2011)

The United Arab Emirates women's national football team (Arabic : منتخب الإمارات العربية المتحدة لكرة القدم للسيداتMuntakhab Al'Iimarat Alearabiat Almutahidat Likurat Alqadam lilsayidat) represents United Arab Emirates in the international women's football, and is run by the United Arab Emirates Football Association (UAEFA).

Its highest ranking in the FIFA Women's World Rankings is 73rd, achieved in March 2015 at its first appearance in the ranking. The team won back-to-back WAFF Women's Championships in 2010 and 2011. ^[3]

History

The foundations of women’s football in the United Arab Emirates were laid in the mid-2000s. In 2004, Abu Dhabi Country Club began promoting women’s football, and by 2009 the UAEFA created a dedicated Women’s Football Committee to formalise the game at national level. ^[4]

The UAE women’s national team played its first official international match on 20 February 2010, defeating Palestine 4–2 in Abu Dhabi. Soon afterwards, the team achieved regional success, winning the 2010 WAFF Women's Championship and successfully defending the title in the 2011 WAFF Women's Championship, held from 3–12 October in Abu Dhabi, where they defeated Iran in the final.

In 2014, the UAEFA declared that the elite national team would consist exclusively of Emirati citizens, phasing out naturalised players in order to develop home-grown talent and ensure alignment with FIFA eligibility rules. ^[5]

Between 2015 and 2018, FIFA supported the UAE women’s football programme through the “Live Your Goals” initiative, providing technical and financial assistance to encourage grassroots participation and expand the player base. ^[6] These years also saw a gradual shift from informal seven-a-side competitions towards structured 11-a-side leagues.

In 2023, the UAE Women's Football League was relaunched, with clubs such as Abu Dhabi Country Club competing alongside independent sides like Banaat FC, which secured landmark sponsorship deals with Nike and TikTok. ^[7] Abu Dhabi Country Club became the first Emirati club to compete in the AFC Women's Champions League in 2024–25. ^[8]

In January 2025, Dutch coach Vera Pauw was appointed head coach to lead the professionalisation of the national side, building on the foundations laid by Emirati coach Houriya Al Taheri and her successors. ^[9]

Home stadium

While the team occasionally uses larger venues for major fixtures, recent friendlies (including the April 2025 series against the Philippines) have been held at the UAEFA Headquarters in Al Khawaneej, Dubai. ^[10]

Results and fixtures

Main article: United Arab Emirates women's national football team results

See also: 2026 in association football, 2026 in sports, and FIFA International Match Calendar

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

Legend

  Win  Draw  Loss  Void or postponed  Fixture

2025

United Arab Emirates   v   Philippines

April 4 Friendly	United Arab Emirates	1–4	Philippines	Dubai, United Arab Emirates
19:30  UTC+4	Juma 89'	Report	Long 8' C. McDaniel 19', 33' Serrano 31'	Stadium: Theyab Awana Stadium

United Arab Emirates   v   Philippines

April 8 Friendly	United Arab Emirates	0–4	Philippines	Dubai, United Arab Emirates
19:30  UTC+4		Report	Eggesvik 37' Frilles 54' Long 62' C. McDaniel 74'	Stadium: Theyab Awana Stadium

United Arab Emirates   v   Bahrain

29 May Friendly	United Arab Emirates	0–0	Bahrain	Al-Khawaneej, United Arab Emirates
19:45  UTC+4		Report		Stadium: UAEFA Stadium Referee: Shahenda El-Maghrabi (Egypt)

United Arab Emirates   v   Bahrain

2 June Friendly	United Arab Emirates	2–2	Bahrain	Al-Khawaneej, United Arab Emirates
19:45  UTC+4	Lindborg 63' Bhandari 69'	Report	Al-Mannaei 44' Al-Isa 66'	Stadium: UAEFA Stadium Referee: Shahenda El-Maghrabi (Egypt)

United Arab Emirates   v   Malaysia

18 June Friendly	United Arab Emirates	1–3	Malaysia	Al-Khawaneej, United Arab Emirates
19:45  UTC+4	Al-Zahmi	Report	Nurfazira S. Intan Sarah Z. Nur Adrienna Z.	Stadium: UAE FA Stadium Referee: Noura El Sayed (Egypt)

United Arab Emirates   v   Malaysia

21 June Friendly	United Arab Emirates	0–2	Malaysia	Al-Khawaneej, United Arab Emirates
19:45  UTC+4		Report	Adrienna 24' Farahiyah 25'	Stadium: UAEFA Stadium Referee: Noura El Sayed (Egypt)

Guam   v   United Arab Emirates

29 June 2026 AFC Asian Cup qualification	Guam	0–0	United Arab Emirates	Việt Trì, Vietnam
16:00  UTC+7		Report		Stadium: Việt Trì Stadium Referee: Pansa Chaisanit (Thailand)

United Arab Emirates   v   Vietnam

2 July 2026 AFC Asian Cup qualification	United Arab Emirates	0–6	Vietnam	Việt Trì, Vietnam
19:00  UTC+7		Report	Chương Thị Kiều 11' Thái Thị Thảo 14' Nguyễn Thị Vạn 43', 51' Phạm Hải Yến 64' Ngân Thị Vạn Sự 90+4'	Stadium: Việt Trì Stadium Referee: Dong Fangyu (China)

United Arab Emirates   v   Maldives

5 July 2026 AFC Asian Cup qualification	United Arab Emirates	5–0	Maldives	Việt Trì, Vietnam
16:00  UTC+7	Al-Zaabi 28', 45+4', 47' Al-Hosani 68' Al-Hazmi 90+1'	Report		Stadium: Việt Trì Stadium Referee: Anjana Rai (Nepal)

United Arab Emirates   v   Iraq

26 November 2025 WAFF Championship GS	United Arab Emirates	0–3	Iraq	Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
16:45  UTC+3		Report	Omar 20' Al-Jawahiri 47' Salihi 90+5'	Stadium: Hall Stadium – King Abdullah Sports City Referee: Yasmin Nairoukh (Palestine)

Saudi Arabia   v   United Arab Emirates

28 November 2025 WAFF Championship GS	Saudi Arabia	5–0	United Arab Emirates	Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
19:45  UTC+3	Abdullah 3', 10' Abdulrazak 26' Khalid 28' Abu Al-Samh 43'	Report		Stadium: Hall Stadium – King Abdullah Sports City Referee: Mohammed Al-Manii (Oman)

2026

United Arab Emirates   v   Tajikistan

1 March 2026 (2026-03-01) Friendly	United Arab Emirates	Postponed	Tajikistan	TBD, United Arab Emirates
--:--  UTC+4				Stadium: TBD

United Arab Emirates   v   Tajikistan

5 March 2026 (2026-03-05) Friendly	United Arab Emirates	Postponed	Tajikistan	TBD, United Arab Emirates
--:--  UTC+4				Stadium: TBD

Current staff

Position	Name
Head coach	Vera Pauw
Assistant coach	Houriya Al-Taheri
Goalkeeping coach	Noora Al Mazroui
Fitness coach	Junaid Shaikh
Physical coach	Leila Tomaz
Doctor	Yasin Al Mansoori
Sport Scientist	Shehzad Naeem
Match Analyst	Obaid Al Muhairi

Managerial history

The following table outlines the head coaches of the UAE women's national football team.

Name	Period	Matches	Wins	Draws	Losses	Win %	Notes	Ref.
Samir Landolsi	2015–2017	–	–	–	–	–	Coached UAE at the 2015 Aphrodite Cup (Cyprus) and during the 2017 AFC Women's Asian Cup qualifiers.	[11] [12]
Houriya Al-Taheri	2019–2021	–	–	–	–	–	Former UAE international; assistant coach 2015–2018, promoted to head coach by 2019 WAFF Women’s Championship; profiled as head coach in 2021.	[13] [14] [ circular reference ]
Camila Orlando	2021–2024	5	1	0	4	20%	Oversaw friendlies and qualifiers during her tenure.
Vera Pauw	2025–present	13	3	3	7	23.07%	Appointed January 2025; previously managed Netherlands, South Africa, and Ireland.	[15]

Players

Current squad

The following players were named to the squad for the friendlies against Philippines on 4 and 8 April 2025.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1 GK	Rouda Al Thumairi	(1992-07-01) 1 July 1992 (age 33)	1	0
22	1 GK	Maha Al Boloushi	(2004-05-17) 17 May 2004 (age 21)	4	0	Abu Dhabi Country Club
35	1 GK	Rachel van Herk		0	0
40	1 GK	Aya AlDuhail	(2005-01-04) 4 January 2005 (age 21)	0	0	Banaat
6	2 DF	Ghanima Obaid	(2003-10-22) 22 October 2003 (age 22)	13	0	Abu Dhabi Country Club
30	2 DF	Ava Steven				Delta State University
27	2 DF	Marwa Almnhali
12	2 DF	Dhabia Meshal	(2004-01-16) 16 January 2004 (age 22)			Banaat
4	2 DF	Nikita Fernandez
18	2 DF	Misha Fernandez
14	2 DF	Olivia Meuleman
20	2 DF	Annaya Ahmed
11	2 DF	Claudia May				Precision Football
2	2 DF	Fatima Jassem	(2002-04-23) 23 April 2002 (age 23)	12	1	Abu Dhabi Country Club
26	2 DF	Fatima AlNubi
9	3 MF	Rawan Al Hammadi	(2002-11-12) 12 November 2002 (age 23)	19	1	Abu Dhabi Country Club
30	3 MF	Maitha Mohamed
17	3 MF	Misha Bhandari
24	3 MF	Safa Shafi
8	3 MF	Nouf Al Anzi				Abu Dhabi Country Club
13	3 MF	Areej Al Hammadi	(1986-02-13) 13 February 1986 (age 40)	15	1	Abu Dhabi Country Club
3	3 MF	Tala Chabara
5	3 MF	Caye Yocor	(2004-08-02) 2 August 2004 (age 21)			Banaat
9	3 MF	Stella Fedyun	(2008-04-26) 26 April 2008 (age 17)			Banaat
19	3 MF	Fatima Al Zahraa
16	4 FW	Sara Sameh
21	4 FW	Jenna Mahmoud
7	4 FW	Mia Lindborg				Seton Hill University
8	4 FW	Elizabeth Forshaw				Columbus State Cougars
7	4 FW	Naeema Juma				Abu Dhabi Country Club
15	4 FW	Georgia Gibson				Middlesbrough

(Players are listed within position group by order of kit number, caps, goals, seniority, and then alphabetically)

Recent call-ups

The following players have been named to the squad in the past 12 months.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up

(Players are listed within position group by order of latest call-up, caps, goals, seniority, and then alphabetically)

Honours

Regional

• WAFF Women's Championship

Champions: 2010, 2011

Record per opponent

Key

  Positive balance (more wins than losses)

  Neutral balance (as many wins as losses)

  Negative balance (more losses than wins)

The following table shows United Arab Emirates's all-time official international record per opponent:

Opponent	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	W%	Confederation
Azerbaijan	3	0	0	3	4	9	−5	0	UEFA
Bangladesh	2	2	0	0	6	2	+4	100	AFC
Bahrain	6	2	4	0	12	4	+8	33.33	AFC
Georgia	6	0	1	5	3	17	−14	0	UEFA
Greece	1	0	0	1	0	7	−7	0	UEFA
Guam	2	1	1	0	2	1	+1	50	AFC
India	1	0	0	1	1	4	−3	0	AFC
Iran	2	0	1	1	3	6	−3	0	AFC
Iraq	6	5	0	1	17	4	+13	83.33	AFC
Jordan	3	1	0	2	2	10	−8	33.33	AFC
Kuwait	1	1	0	0	7	0	+7	100	AFC
Latvia	1	0	0	1	0	2	−2	0	UEFA
Lebanon	3	2	0	1	8	2	+6	66.67	AFC
Luxembourg	2	0	0	2	2	11	−9	0	UEFA
Malaysia	2	0	0	2	1	5	−4	0	AFC
Malta	2	0	0	2	0	8	−8	0	UEFA
Maldives	5	4	0	1	8	2	+6	80	AFC
Palestine	3	2	1	0	8	4	+4	66.67	AFC
Philippines	3	0	0	3	1	12	−7	0	AFC
Saudi Arabia	1	0	0	1	0	5	−5	0	AFC
Slovakia	2	0	0	2	0	15	−15	0	UEFA
Singapore	2	1	1	0	4	0	+4	66.67	AFC
Syria	4	2	0	2	9	5	+4	50	AFC
Tajikistan	1	1	0	0	1	0	+1	100	AFC
Tunisia	1	0	0	1	0	4	−4	0	CAF
Uzbekistan	2	0	0	2	1	13	−12	0	AFC
Vietnam	1	0	0	1	0	6	−6	0	AFC
Total	68	24	9	35	100	158	−58	35.29	—

Competitive record

FIFA Women's World Cup

FIFA Women's World Cup record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GS	GA	GD
1991	Did not exist
1995
1999
2003
2007
2011	Did not enter
2015
2019	Did not qualify
2023
2027
2031	TBD
2035	TBD
Total	0/12	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–

*Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.

AFC Women's Asian Cup

AFC Women's Asian Cup record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GS	GA	GD
1975	Did not exist
1977
1980
1981
1983
1986
1989
1991
1993
1995
1997
1999
2001
2003
2006
2008
2010
2014	Did not enter
2018	Did not qualify
2022
2026
2029	TBD
Total	0/20	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–

*Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.

Asian Games

Asian Games record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GS	GA	GD
1990	Did not exist
1994
1998
2002
2006
2010	Did not enter
2014
2018
2022
2026	TBD
2030
2034
Total	0/10	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–

*Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.

WAFF Women's Championship

WAFF Women's Championship record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GS	GA	GD
2005	Did not exist
2007
2010	Champions	1st	4	4	0	0	16	2	+14
2011		1st	5	3	1	1	18	6	+12
2014	Did not enter
2019	Fourth round	4th	4	0	2	2	2	7	-5
2022	Withdrew
2024	Did not enter
2025	Group stage	5th	2	0	0	2	0	8	-8
Total	Champions	1st	15	7	3	5	36	23	+13

See also

• United Arab Emirates women's national under-20 football team
• United Arab Emirates women's national under-17 football team

References

1. "The FIFA/Coca-Cola Women's World Ranking". FIFA. 11 December 2025. Retrieved 11 December 2025.
2. "Women footballers make international debut". thenational.ae. 19 February 2010. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
3. "UAE triumph in West Asian Women's Championship". thenationalnews.com. 13 October 2011. Retrieved 23 October 2022.
4. "UAE women's team living the dream". FIFA. 1 April 2017. Retrieved 26 August 2025.
5. "Women's sport participation in the United Arab Emirates: a case study" . Retrieved 26 August 2025.
6. "FIFA Live Your Goals: UAE case study". Archived from the original on 13 February 2019. Retrieved 26 August 2025.
7. "Banaat FC sign Nike deal". 1 May 2023. Retrieved 26 August 2025.
8. "ADCC Women in AFC WCL". 20 September 2024. Retrieved 26 August 2025.
9. "Vera Pauw named UAE WNT head coach". 14 February 2025. Retrieved 26 August 2025.
10. "UAE vs Philippines friendly report". 8 April 2025.
11. "UAE at Aphrodite Cup". 13 March 2015.
12. "Match report: UAE vs Bahrain – 2017 AFC Women's Asian Cup qualifiers". 6 April 2017.
13. "UAE coach Houriya Al-Taheri is shooting star of Emirati women's football". 8 March 2021.
14. "2019 WAFF Women's Championship squads" . Retrieved 26 August 2025.
15. "Vera Pauw named UAE WNT head coach". 14 February 2025.

External links

• Official website (in English)
• instagram
• X