WAFF Dwarf Football Championships
A Milestone for Inclusion and Collaboration
The recently-concluded WAFF Dwarf Football Championships (24–27 October 2025, Amman, Jordan) marks a significant step forward in inclusive sport and strengthens the expanding partnership between West Asia Football Federation (WAFF) and Para Football. The most important achievement is the start of Dwarf Football competition for players of the West Asian region.
A landmark tournament
The tournament brought together four national teams—Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon and Syria—in the first of its kind under WAFF’s social-responsibility arm, the WAFF Foundation. Hosted in Jordan’s “Sports Palace Hall” at the Al-Hussein Youth City complex in Amman, the event was held under the patronage of Prince Ali bin Al‐Hussein, President of WAFF and Chair of the WAFF Foundation.
The format involved round-robin group-stage fixtures followed by finals to determine third place and a gold-medal final.
Highlights from the competition
From the opening day, the energy and ambition of the competing teams shone through. On 24 October, Iraq started strong against Lebanon with a 10–1 win and Jordan beat Syria 6–3. On the following day, Jordan repeated the feat with a 5–0 win over Lebanon, while Iraq defeated Syria 12–1.
By the end of the group stage, Jordan had secured three wins from three matches, topping the group, while Iraq finished in second place. Jordan then beat Iraq 5–2 in the final to lift the title; Syria claimed the bronze medal after beating Lebanon 1–0.
An associated refereeing workshop for dwarf‐football officials was also part of the event—underlining the tournament’s dual focus on competition and capacity-building.
Developing the partnership between WAFF and Para Football
For Para Football, the event is more than a tournament: it is a tangible outcome of an ongoing collaboration with WAFF and the WAFF Foundation to increase access, raise standards and build a sustainable future for adapted football in West Asia. The official announcement of the Championship described it as “a landmark tournament designed to drive the development and growth of dwarf football across the region.”
This initiative aligns directly with Para Football’s collaboration with WAFF: expanding opportunities, building technical and refereeing capacity, and embedding inclusive sport into regional football governance.
In Jordan, WAFF’s social-responsibility arm and Para Football joined the national Paralympic Committee to deliver a high-visibility, inclusive sporting event. The partnership has delivered not just matches, but also opened doors for future growth, grassroots programmes and regional pathways for players with dwarfism.
Why this matters
- Sporting inclusion: The tournament offers athletes with dwarfism a regional competitive platform, enabling representation and performance recognition.
- Capacity building: By hosting a dedicated refereeing/technical workshop, the event invests in the talent infrastructure needed for long-term growth.
- Regional leadership: Jordan’s hosting role highlights the nation’s commitment to inclusive sport, positioning it as a hub for adapted football in West Asia. the-waff.com
- Partnership leverage: The collaboration between WAFF, the WAFF Foundation and Para Football establishes a model for joint delivery of inclusive sport initiatives at a regional level.
Looking ahead
With this successful inaugural edition behind us, the focus now turns to scaling the impact: expanding the number of participating nations, building national-level programmes for talent development, and ensuring the refereeing and technical standards are embedded across the region. The WAFF-Para Football partnership is primed to develop these next steps.
We look forward to sharing further updates—on new national programmes, community-level engagement and expanded tournaments—as this partnership continues to grow.
For more information
To visit our project page with WAFF, click here
To view all the Championship results and photo gallery, click here
