The Afghan Premier League (APL) is playing its second season of professional soccer in 2013 after a successful debut year. Some 144 Afghan football players from the eight teams in the APL live together in a large communal house in the capital where they eat and sleep during the seven-week season, earning about $9 per day. All APL matches are played in a Kabul stadium, making every game a "home" game for each team. (10 PHOTOS)
Afghan Pro Soccer League Begins Second Season
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Afghan soccer players at a training session at a Kabul stadium on September 2.
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Afghan pro football players training at a Kabul stadium on September 2.
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The Afghan soccer players eating lunch at their communal house in Kabul on September 2.
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Afghan players practicing in Kabul on September 2.
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Afghan footballers participate in a training session at the Kabul stadium on September 2.
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Afghan football player Emal Mangal (left), 19, talks with other players in his dorm room in Kabul on September 2.
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Afghan players relax in their dormitory.
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Afghan footballers play a video game in a dorm room while others watch at their communal house in Kabul.
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Afghan soccer players dance in their dorm room in Kabul.
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Afghan football players training in Kabul with a poster of legendary Afghan commander Ahmad Shah Masud in the background.