The opportunity came suddenly. Bangladesh is on course to take part in the ASEAN Cup, to be held in Indonesia with FIFA funding. The door opened because India withdrew. The Bangladesh Football Federation moved towards a positive decision on accepting the late invitation on Friday.
The matter was discussed at a special meeting of the national team committee on Friday afternoon. Committee members present agreed to send Bangladesh to the ASEAN Cup. Confirmation from FIFA is now awaited.
The biggest advantage for Bangladesh is that taking part places no additional financial burden on the federation. The organisers will cover participating teams’ travel and accommodation costs, and teams will also be paid to take part.
Division One of the FIFA-funded tournament will be held in Indonesia from Sept 24 to Oct 4. The eight participating teams have been divided into two groups of four. In India’s place, Bangladesh will play one group match each against Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.
The format also differs from the norm. After the group stage, the two group winners go straight into the final. The competition does not end with the title match: the two group runners-up meet in a third-place play-off, the third-placed teams in a fifth-place play-off, and the fourth-placed teams in a seventh-place play-off. Bangladesh will therefore play four matches at the tournament.
India play Brazil in Kolkata on Oct 3 and withdrew from the ASEAN Cup with that fixture in mind, creating the opening for Bangladesh in FIFA’s new tournament.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report