It may not be Stadium Australia or Eden Park, but two days before the Women’s World Cup, CB Smith Reserve in outer north Melbourne will play host to a significant clash of its own: the inaugural Hope Cup. Contested by the former Afghan women’s national team and “Football Empowerment”, a team representing the city’s refugee and migrant communities, the Hope Cup will be imbued with its own symbolism on the eve of the tournament.
“It’s going to be a very exciting, and important, day,” says Fatima Yousufi, a goalkeeper and the Afghan captain.
