It all started with Zidane, back in 2006, tucked away in a boarding school with limited TV access, a young Faizan Sameer caught a glimpse of France playing in the FIFA World Cup. Once Faizan saw Zinedine Zidane play, something clicked. He recognized a new path that made him fall in love with the game. From that moment, football became a central part of his life. He played regularly throughout school and college, often taking long rickshaw rides across the city just to attend practice sessions. But passion alone wasn’t enough. 

There was no structure, no pathway, and no future for footballers in Pakistan, he recalls. As financial pressures grew, he made the difficult but necessary choice to step away from the sport and take up various jobs to support his family. Still, he never truly walked away from the game. Years later, a chance to coach a corporate football team for a real estate group (Team 18) brought him back, this time on the sidelines. 

Under his leadership, Team 18 clinched over 30 major trophies, eventually becoming the top-ranked football team in Pakistan. That early encouragement led to him graduating with a UEFA certification in football management, which further deepened his understanding of the game beyond the pitch. 

With this perspective, Faizan returned home and founded Football Factory, a platform designed to give young players the very opportunities he never had. Determined to strengthen his foundation, he was the first Pakistani to earn a UEFA Certificate in Football Management. For him, it wasn’t about collecting credentials; it was about unlocking clarity. The program gave structure to what he had always understood instinctively, offering a framework that had been missing.

Previously, he lacked formal knowledge of football’s technicalities. UEFA gave him the foundation and confidence to change that. Now he knows exactly what has to be done and how it’s done in Europe. That program filled critical gaps like governance structures, marketing, communication strategies, legal operations, and the roles of executive committees. It wasn’t abstract theory; it was a direct window into how global football ecosystems function.

Faizan shares:

“Now I’m 110% equipped. I know what the pillars of football development are. I have the material. I have a network. I know how to build.”

A trip to Switzerland brought clarity to his vision for football in Pakistan. “For the first time, I saw what real football looks like: structured, professional, and respected. I kept thinking, “Why can’t we have this back home?”

Faizan maintains that even though football is growing as a sport in Pakistan, genuine opportunities remain limited. “Here, most of the football academies have become mere business models,” he says.

At the Football Factory, the mission feels different. It’s not just about finding the next star; it’s about shaping people. That starts with the coaches.

“They’re the first heroes for these kids. If we don’t develop them, we fail the players, too,” Faizan shares. 

He believes early-age coaching is essential, not only for football skills but also for building life skills like discipline, teamwork, and sociability. Parents may enroll children to reduce screen time but end up seeing improvements in motor skills, physical strength, mental agility, and character.

However, he stays grounded in realism, pointing out that Pakistan cannot copy European football training methods. “Our ground realities, strengths, and weaknesses are different,” he explains.

To address the same, Football Factory and Team 18 have created a unique curriculum, tailored specifically to Pakistan’s context.

According to Faizan, Pakistan’s biggest issue in women’s football is the old-school politics that dominate the system. Instead of building opportunities, favoritism often outweighs genuine talent among stakeholders, ensuring their acquaintances get the spotlight. He asserts that we need a level playing field based on sporting merit. Faizan believes that the Pakistan Football Federation must set a clear five-year plan for the national team. Every club’s training model should align with that vision. That way, every player, regardless of the city or club of origin, is developed on the same foundation. 

But none of this is possible, he stresses, without first fixing the environment.

“Women need safe spaces to train and grow. Without that, we can’t even begin talking about equal opportunities. Football alone isn’t enough; education is the safety net.”

Through partnerships like the one with Roots International Schools & Colleges, his organization has made it possible for talented yet underprivileged players to earn scholarships, which is a groundbreaking move in Pakistan’s limited football ecosystem. Faizan stresses that the uncertainty of football as a career, especially in Pakistan, makes access to education critical. “If you get injured, it’s over. What then?” he asks.

That’s why he adds that academic support is not just helpful, it’s essential.

He believes schools, colleges, and universities should step in with more structured sports scholarship programs. “It’s a win-win. These institutions get visibility. These kids get a chance.”

Donning a finer analytical lens, Faizan emphasizes that the real challenge is not about positions or politics but about building a proper system for football in Pakistan. With a new federation now in place after recent elections, he expresses hope that leadership will finally prioritize the game over personal interests.

“This is the moment to put football first,” he says with cautious optimism, looking forward to seeing people work in the right direction.

He also highlights a crisis in coach education, pointing out that most certified coaches haven’t updated their training in decades. “Football has evolved; our coaching hasn’t,” he shares.

For the past three years, Faizan has used content creation as a powerful tool to shift perceptions about football in Pakistan. He has become known as someone actively working for football through his platform. He believes content and football now go hand-in-hand. His digital presence has not only amplified the sport’s visibility but also created much-needed awareness. He pointed out that most children under 16 now prefer either football or cricket. According to him, children are getting into football at an early age, sometimes as young as three years old. But the real question, he points out, is: what comes next? 

Faizan acknowledges that Pakistan will always remain a cricket-first nation, and he’s made his peace with the same. The country has won World Cups, created unforgettable moments in cricket, and that is a legacy that can’t be denied. But the shift toward football has already begun, and it’s unfolding organically. 

He recalls how recent matches at Jinnah Stadium drew over 20,000 people, including families with young children, even grandparents, all gathered simply for a qualifying match. There were no flashy campaigns, no special promotions. Just people showing up because they care. And that’s exactly what Faizan sees as the turning point when ordinary people start showing up on their own. It signals that grassroots interest is the real game-changer.

It isn’t a quick fix or a magic wand, but a slow, steady process that’s already underway, he believes. Even small local tournaments, often without proper setups, are now live-streamed and attract hundreds of viewers, something that simply didn’t happen before.

With this ray of hope, Faizan believes that the torchbearers of Pakistan’s football revolution won’t be from his generation but the one that follows. “They’ll be the ones to create history,” he says without hesitation.

He adds,

“The people before us didn’t know what to do, and many were corrupt. They saw money, not football. Our generation? There’s too much politics. Everyone wants their name in the history books. Everyone’s building their lobby, their monopoly.”

But in the next wave, he sees hope:

“They will inherit awareness. By then, people will finally take football seriously in this country. It won’t just be an individual struggle; it’ll become a national cause.” 

And with that comes responsibility. “Stay united,” He urges. “Sit down together with all stakeholders and think about Pakistan first. That’s the only way forward.”