Afghanistan’s national team went down 2-1 to Argentina on Wednesday night in their second FIFA Futsal World Cup 2024 match in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

Afghanistan’s goal was scored by Hussain Mohammadi and the Player of the Match went to Afghanistan’s Javad Safari.

Argentina’s win meant the Group C team booked their spot in the knockout phase of the tournament.

Next up for Afghanistan is their clash against Ukraine on Saturday, September 21.

Fans can however tune in to watch Thursday and Friday’s matches live on Ariana Television - the official broadcaster of this year’s FIFA Futsal World Cup.

Match Day 5, Wednesday September 18, of the FIFA Futsal World Cup in Uzbekistan will see Afghanistan take on Argentina in their Group C match.

The match will kick off at 7.30pm at the Humo Arena, in Tashkent.

While both teams beat their opponents in their opening matches, history favors Argentina, which is ranked 5th in the world. However, supporters favor Afghanistan, which is ranked 30th. 

For the masses of Afghan fans who have made their way to Tashkent for the match, fireworks and goals are expected as the two teams tussle it out for a win. 

Speaking ahead of the match,  Afghan player Akbar Kazemi said: “I think it will be a very exciting spectacle for the supporters. There will be a lot of goals. 

“We like to play beautiful futsal and so do Argentina. We will give it our all because we want to finish top of our group.”

Other matches scheduled for Wednesday are Angola v Ukraine, Libya v Kazakhstan, and Spain v New Zealand.

Fans who are not able to experience the thrill of the match tonight in person can tune in to Ariana Television to watch the game. 

Ariana Television network is the official broadcaster of this World Cup and is broadcasting matches live each day. 

Afghanistan will face cricket powerhouse South Africa in the first of three one-day international (ODI) fixtures at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium in the UAE on Wednesday.

Afghanistan and South Africa have met five times before – twice in ODIs and three times in T20Is – and on all of those occasions, during various World Cups, South Africa have come out on top.

However, Afghanistan, who only received full member International Cricket Council (ICC) status in 2017, has beaten every Test-playing nation in white-ball cricket except India and South Africa.

South Africa’s Lungi Ngidi said Monday that for this reason, the Afghans cannot be underestimated.

“The opinion of a cricket team is purely based on what people think, (but) it’s not always the truth,” Ngidi said.

“Anyone’s opinion on what Afghanistan might play like, that doesn’t affect us because we’ve seen what they can do against other international teams.

“We’re not taking this series lightly. They have world-class cricketers and match winners, and on their day they can beat the best in the world.

“We’ve seen it happen, so I don’t think anyone should be looking at them as minnows. We definitely know what we’re in for.”

For Afghanistan, Rashid Khan has returned from an injury that kept him out of a one-off Test against New Zealand, which was rained out without a ball being bowled.