Layla Banaras in motion within the fielding whereas taking part in soccer. — Reporter
KARACHI: Within the evolving panorama of Pakistan girls’s soccer, diaspora expertise is taking part in an more and more necessary position, and few embody that shift extra clearly than Layla Banaras.
Born in Birmingham in 2006 to a Pakistani father and English mom, Banaras has already carved out an expert pathway in English soccer whereas concurrently changing into an necessary a part of Pakistan’s nationwide group setup.
A midfielder for FA Ladies’s Nationwide League South membership Lewes, she represents a rising technology of British South Asian girls breaking into elite soccer environments.
Her journey isn’t just about soccer improvement; it’s also about id, belonging, and alternative throughout two cultures.
“It’s like two different worlds coming together, so it has really taught me a lot about myself and about the world, really, and I think I’m so grateful that I was brought up in that sort of household.”
That twin id has helped form her outlook, each as a participant and as an individual navigating the calls for {of professional} sport.
Like many footballers, Banaras’ earliest steps got here far-off from stadium lights.
“I got introduced to football through, obviously, my brother, my cousins, my family. We always used to play in the garden, so that’s what sort of, you know, pushed me to play football, sort of.”
That casual starting ultimately was a historic rise via English soccer. In January 2023, she made historical past as the primary South Asian heritage lady to seem for Birmingham Metropolis within the skilled period, debuting in an FA Cup match towards Huddersfield City. Later, she joined Wolverhampton Wanderers on twin registration earlier than transferring to Lewes in 2025.
Now firmly established within the English system, Banaras continues to develop as a participant in a extremely aggressive atmosphere whereas balancing her worldwide commitments with Pakistan.
Her choice to symbolize Pakistan got here at a defining stage in her profession“I think for me it was the right time in my career and my life to sort of take that next step to play international football and to represent Pakistan means so much, so I thought when they came, and they offered, I thought, why not, like just do it, and it’s been a dream so far.”
That selection has added a brand new layer to her soccer journey, one which connects her to her roots whereas testing her on the worldwide degree.
Like many gamers of her technology, Banaras grew up watching a few of soccer’s greatest names“I used to watch clips of Messi, Ronaldo, Neymar, Ronaldinho, just all these legends really, and I think they really helped me develop my game and really inspire me.”
Since becoming a member of the nationwide setup, Banaras has shortly tailored to worldwide soccer. In Pakistan’s AFC Ladies’s Asian Cup qualification marketing campaign in Jakarta, she made an instantaneous affect from defence, registering assists in key matches towards Indonesia and Kyrgyzstan.
Her performances replicate each technical means and sport intelligence, uncommon qualities for a younger footballer adjusting to worldwide calls for.
Banaras additionally highlighted the significance of worldwide publicity in shaping group unity and improvement“I feel the expertise in West Africa has been superb,” she said about the Pakistan team’s tour to the Ivory Coast.
“The hosts have been so welcoming, the people are really lovely, and it’s a really nice place, and I think we’ve really been able to bond here.”
Facing different styles of opposition has also given her a clearer understanding of where the team needs to improve.
“Obviously, the physical side is really big, and it’s shown us that we need to probably work more in the gym, but I think, to be honest, the playing style is quite similar, but I think it’s just the physical aspect of the game, and I think everything else we do really matches in West Africa.”
Despite challenges, Banaras remains confident in Pakistan’s ability to compete on the international stage.
“I think we’re really excited. We’re the underdogs. And I think we’re really excited to go and show a world-class team what we can do and compete against them,” she mentioned.
Past her taking part in profession, Banaras has additionally contributed to athlete welfare and diet consciousness.
As a youngster, she labored with Birmingham Metropolis’s diet workers to create Ramadan-specific efficiency steering for fasting athletes.
For now, her focus stays cut up between membership soccer in England and worldwide obligation with Pakistan.
“At membership degree, I am undecided. Once I return, I’ve nonetheless acquired every week left of the season. So we’ll see what occurs in pre-season. And with the nationwide group, I simply wish to proceed to assist it develop soccer to develop in Pakistan and for us to maintain exhibiting the world what we will do.”
Layla Banaras represents greater than a footballer transferring via two programs. She stands on the intersection of English improvement buildings and Pakistan’s rising soccer ambitions, a bridge between established professionalism and rising potential.
For Pakistan girls’s soccer, she isn’t just a member of the squad. She is a part of an extended undertaking: constructing perception, expertise, and id on the worldwide stage.
