By Melissa Bean
It’s not new news in the amputee community, but we are just weeks away from the 2026 World Amputee Football Federation (WAFF) World Cup, to be held in San Juan de los Lagos, Mexico, in November. WAFF first held a Men’s World Cup in 2012. The United States first competed in 2014, but has never won.
I’m not a soccer fan who only shows up every four years – but I will admit my futbol-watching hours skyrocketed during the recent 2026 FIFA World Cup. I cheered and shouted with 200 other people crowded into a local brew pub watching the United States team beat Bosnia and Herzegovina. The man next to me gave me a high-five so hard my palm stung for hours. It was worth it.
I have loved soccer since 1974 when my older brother started playing on a team in the American Youth Soccer Association in our hometown in Southern California.
Lucky for me, AYSO began allowing girls to play in 1978 – right when I turned 6 years old. Saturday mornings in the fall were thrilling. I knew I’d get to see my brother play, I’d get to play, and I’d probably get a hot dog for lunch. If only my shin guards didn’t make me so sweaty it would be perfect.
Having one hand didn’t make much difference when I played soccer. I’m a congenital left below-elbow amputee. I was fast, I was determined and it helped to be the only left-footed kid on the team. As a forward, I would choke and shank the ball off the field any time I got anywhere close to scoring a goal, but I was great on midfield or defense. The only time my arm was a challenge was if I was doing the throw in.
Depending on the referee, my throw in was acceptable or it was not. Arms behind the head and both feet on the ground was the position I thought I was holding, but not everyone saw it that way. Some referees gave me several chances to get it right. Others asked me to give the ball to a teammate. Otherwise, there were no adjustments made for me on the field – I was never going to be a goalkeeper, but I was still ecstatic to be playing.
Many years later, I was the editor of AYSO’s membership magazine – PLAYSOCCER and had front-row seats to the 2003 FIFA Women’s World Cup held in the United States. The U.S. Women beat Canada for third place and Germany won the cup. My eventually children played AYSO too, though it didn’t speak to them more than their artistic endeavors.
This year’s World Cup was one of the most exciting I can remember – most likely because it was played here in the U.S. After the U.S. men’s team, mired in controversy, lost to Belgium I was quickly distracted from my disappointment by 10,000 memes featuring the world’s most hysterical Viking striker – Erling Haaland. He was everywhere: bouncing a ball off another player; drinking the opposing team’s goalkeeper’s water while everyone else waited for the Video Assistant Referee to weigh on a penalty; sliding across the pitch on his knees; fixing his hair; making funny faces. Endless entertainment for myself and millions more.
I also spent hours reading all of the fantastic feature articles about Irish fans drinking all the beer in Boston; Scottish fans playing bagpipes in the streets; and Swedish fans rowing themselves through airports across the country.
Sweden became my team. Then they lost. I rooted for England. Then they lost. Finally, I had to choose between Spain and Argentina, (I chose Spain) and watched a game that went on so long I took a bathroom break during the first half of the 30-minutes of extra time and missed the only goal that counted.
The 24 national teams that will compete in the WAFF World Cup this fall have qualified through the African, Asian, European and American confederation tournaments. They include:
Africa: Algeria, Angola, Egypt, Ghana, Liberia, Morocco, Nigeria
Asia: Iran, Iraq, Japan, Uzbekistan
Americas: Costa Rica, Mexico, USA, Brazil, Colombia, Uruguay
Europe: England, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Spain, Turkey
Amputee soccer is played on a smaller field with seven players: six outfield players on forearm crutches and one goalkeeper. No prosthetics are used during play. Outfield players have a lower limb amputation (or a non-amputee with one shoe off and a red or black sock over one leg to simulate an amputation). Goalkeepers have an upper limb amputation (or tuck one arm into their jersey).
The WAFF held the first Women’s Amputee Soccer World Cup in November 2024 in Barranquilla, Colombia. The Colombian Women Amputee Football team won the cup in 2024 after beating the United States in the final match. The next WAFF Women’s World Cup is pending and the hope is that fundraising will keep both teams and both championships operating with consistency.
Amputee soccer isn’t about making heroes of amputees or playing non-competitively so amputees can succeed – it’s about athleticism and empowerment. Several groups organize amateur amputee soccer throughout the United States including AYSO and the U.S Soccer Federation.
I am beyond happy to know there is relief ahead for the letdown I’ve felt since mid-July when the FIFA World Cup ended. I’ll be looking for a streaming service that will air the WAFF World Cup and hope to scream for the U.S. team all the way to victory.
