Mumbai, Feb 28 (Reporter) Nadiya Nighat is already a trailblazer in Indian sport, she is the first ever female football coach in Kashmir and has used the sport as a tool for the upliftment of other women in the Kashmir region. Having first started playing with boys, Nadiya continues to don many hats in the sport of football. She became the first female football coach in Kashmir at just 19 in 2015. Hailing from the Rambagh area in Srinagar, Nadiya has stood firm against perceptions and gender bias to carve a niche for herself as one of the leading voices in the region. Reliance Foundation Youth Sports (RFYS) is dedicated to promoting football and empowering women across all levels of the game. As part of its various initiatives to empower women in football, RFYS hosted the Women’s Football Referees Workshop on February 21 and 22 in Srinagar, in collaboration with the All India Football Federation (AIFF). This initiative aims to upskill and inspire over 170 women match officials across India, fostering a stronger and more inclusive refereeing ecosystem. The workshops will continue in Kolkata (March 1-2), Shillong (March 8-9), Chennai (March 15-16) and Mumbai (March 19-20). Nadiya hailed the initiative, saying, “This workshop is a great platform for the women officials in the region to gain knowledge. We have a lot of women who have not played professional football but want to be referees. An initiative like this helps them make that step up and acquire additional skills. I’m sure that from the 16 women from Kashmir who took part in this workshop, a few will go on to officiate at the highest level. A workshop like this will immensely benefit the youth of Jammu & Kashmir.” Nadiya first started off playing cricket before football piqued her interest in 2007 as a 11-year old. “While fielding in cricket, I would always enjoys using my leg to stop the ball. When I got to know that a few boys who used to stay near our house had started playing football, I decided to join them. I didn’t even know that football was a sport at that time, all I knew was that I liked kicking a ball,” Nadiya says about her first memories of the sport. Nadiya still continues to be an active player alongside being a coach. “I have played for many different teams at the national level. Even now, I still continue to play. I most recently took part in the 38th National Games in Uttarakhand,” she adds. Wanting to inspire the young girls in Kashmir she says, “It might be unrealistic but I still dream of playing for the Indian national team. I just want to be a part of at least one national camp. Only so that young girls in Kashmir have a role model in front of them that they can aspire to emulate and follow in the footsteps of. It was something that I never had while growing up.” Each workshop will see match officials from neighbouring regions participate. For instance, the Srinagar session welcomed participants from Chandigarh, Punjab, Jammu, Himachal Pradesh, and other nearby areas. Expert AIFF instructors will lead the workshops, including Uvena Fernandes—the only Indian assistant referee to officiate in a FIFA World Cup final—and Maria Rebello, former captain of the Indian women’s national team and a FIFA-listed referee. In November 2024, RFYS organized a workshop for Indian Women’s League (IWL) match officials, focusing on enhancing technical skills and match-day performance. Since 2022, RFYS in collaboration with AIFF and other strategic partners, has conducted multiple similar workshops, benefiting over 620 coaches and women match officials and empowering them to play critical roles in developing Indian football...////...