The Afghanistan Cricket Federation was established in 1995. It was granted affiliate membership by the International Cricket Council (ICC) in 2001 and this year marked the beginning of an incredible journey in the history of sports, and subsequently being granted associate membership of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) in 2003.

The Afghanistan Cricket Federation was established in 1995. It was granted affiliate membership by the International Cricket Council (ICC) in 2001 and this year marked the beginning of an incredible journey in the history of sports, and subsequently being granted associate membership of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) in 2003.

The game of cricket was not very popular in the country in early to mid-2000. The loss to Hong Kong in the semi-final of the 2006 ACC Trophy brought invaluable benefits to Afghanistan National Cricket Team as it helped the players to develop a passion and tenacity for victories. This in turn influenced the fan following of the game across the country as well as within the Afghan diaspora abroad, particularly amongst the youth. Afghan cricket started to attract the attention of the mass media which helped the coverage of the national team’s rise. In 2007, after becoming the joint champion of the ACC T20 trophy in Kuwait, the national team received a heroes’ welcome upon their arrival from different members of the society including government officials and the victory was celebrated across the country. The national team players were invited to celebratory events in different provinces of Afghanistan. Cricket gave a hope of unity and prosperity to the nation that had been in war for over three decades and this raised the expectations of the public from the national team to play as a unit with even higher spirits. This played a vital role in attracting the interest of the government of Afghanistan at a time when

The Afghanistan Cricket Federation submitted a proposal to the President of the country to elevate the status of the governing body from a Federation to an independent Board, namely the Afghanistan Cricket Board, in order to ensure that it is on par with prevalent practices in other countries, which was approved by the President by issuing a decree on 2nd June, 2009. The increased independence as a result of its recognition as an independent governing body allowed ACB to adopt good governance practices to ensure that key relevant results are delivered in terms of accountability, responsibility, transparency and solidarity.