A groundbreaking football league has been launched to encourage women from the Asian community to take up the sport.

In a joint project, Harrow Borough Council and Middlesex FA have launched The Middlesex Women Desi Football League, is the first of its kind in London.

The league is open to woman from all backgrounds but organisers hope to attract players from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds.

Sheena Hirani, 25, from Harrow set up the league as a pilot project in September last year.

She said: “I wanted to set up the league to give Asian females an opportunity to play and encourage more women and girls from Harrow and Brent to participate in football.

“We started on a small scale with just a few teams so we could gauge their response. The feedback we received was positive and I now want to get more teams from all backgrounds involved.”

Womens development officer for Middlesex FA Ciara Allan said: “Female football across the county has grown dramatically over the past year and continues to do so.

“The Desi division has been a fantastic programme and alongside the newly formed friendly division we are pleased to offer an innovative approach to re-engaging females.”

Those interested in taking part in the league can find out more by emailing Ciara.allan@middlesexfa.com