Afghanistan competed at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London, sending a total of 31 competitors, which consisted of the men's field hockey and football teams.

Afghanistan did not send a team, sending an official to the Barcelona Games in 1992, and sent only two representatives to the Atlanta Games in 1996: light-middleweight boxer Mohammad Jawid Aman was disqualified after he arrived too late for the mandatory weigh-in and draw, which left marathon runner Abdul Baser Wasiqi as the country's sole representative.

[1] The ANOC was suspended by the IOC in 1999, and Afghanistan were subsequently banned from the Sydney Games in 2000 for discrimination against women under the rule of the Taliban and prohibition of sports of any kind.

[3] Afghanistan sent a team of four competitors,[4] including three men and one woman, Mehboba Ahdyar,[5] to the 2008 Beijing Games.

Despite finishing last in the women's 100 metres, Kamia Yousufi became Afghanistan's national record holder with 14.02 seconds, which was also at her Olympic debut.

[9][10][11] Afghanistan received an invitation from the Tripartite Commission to send a men's rifle shooter, Mahdi Yovari, marking the nation's Olympic debut in the sport.

[12] Afghanistan's participation status for the 2024 Summer Olympics was unclear amid the political turmoil and the Taliban's return to power in August 2021.