BFF President’s statement for November 2018

Greetings! Welcome to the briefing of November 2018 U15 boys unbeaten SAFF champions Bangladesh U15 national team won the SAFF U15 Championship 2018 by beating Pakistan in the final in Kathmandu, Nepal. The Red and Greens beat Pakistan 3-2 on penalties after the match had ended 1-1 at the end of regulation time. In the semis, the boys had beaten India on penalties too. The boys showed tremendous character throughout the tournament and reaped the fruits of their hard work. The BFF takes pride in the success of the boys as it had arranged a 3 month residential training camp for the boys in Nilphamari. The boys underwent a rigorous training regime to prepare for the tournament and the results of that is there for everyone to see. The boys have continued their practice after returning with the champions’ trophy and are now preparing for a friendly tournament arranged by UEFA. Olympic qualifiers campaign a learning experience for BD girls Even though the Bangladesh women’s Olympic team could not register a win in Asian qualifiers of Olympic 2020 women’s football discipline, the team gathered valuable experience which will help the team do better in the future. In the tournament, Bangladesh played in Group C of Round 1 against India, Nepal and hosts Myanmar. Bangladesh went down 5-0 in the first match against Myanmar while in the second match, the scoreline was 7-1 against India. Determined to come out of the bad patch, the team gave it their all in the third and final match against Nepal and secured a 1-1 draw. Many may fail to see the positives gained from the tournament, but the players and staff are confident that the experience earned at this level will help develop women’s football in the days to come. The team has rejoined the Elite Women’s Residency camp. This is a part of BFF’s efforts to always keep the players under training and keep them battle-ready for any tournament that comes along the way. The BFF is confident that with training and a little patience, better results would soon be coming Bangladesh’s way. Abahani complete Federation Cup title hattrick Abahani Ltd. Dhaka have won their third consecutive Federation Cup title. They beat Bashundhara Kings 3-1 in the final at the Bangabandhu National Stadium on November 23. This is Abahani’s 11th Federation Cup title in total. The BFF is pleased to have concluded the season opening tournament successfully. Independence Cup 2018 kicks-off The Independence Cup 2018 kicked-off with the match between Saif Sporting Club and Team BJMC at the Bangabandhu National Stadium on December 1. 13 teams are participating in the tournament divided in 4 groups with group B containing 4 teams. The final match of the tournament is scheduled to be held on December 24, 2018. BFF to contract select U15 booters The Bangladesh Football Federation has undertaken a plan to bring some of the selected U15 players under central contract. I revealed the plan to the boys when I gave them a reception at the BFF House and congratulated them for bringing glory to the nation. The BFF wants keep this talented bunch of players under constant monitoring so that no talent gets lost. And to support them mentally and financially, the BFF has taken up the plan to develop talented players from the grassroots. As a part of the plan, we will bring some of the selected players from this team under central BFF contract. The duration of the contract will be three years and the players will receive monthly salary. The BFF is committed to develop the game in the country under its long-term football development programme and it will do anything and everything possible within its resources to give the players the best facilities to develop themselves. BFF focusing on coach education The BFF continues its drive to support the education of coaches throughout Bangladesh in a bid to develop quality coaches who can, in-turn, train quality players. The Federation clearly promotes the development of coaches as a priority within its strategic football framework. The final C Certificate Course of 2018 concluded on the 30th November. This was the fourth course at this level this year, with a full contingent of coaches from all over Bangladesh attending. The course is supported by AFC and its drive towards improving coaches from all over Asia. The goal is to add to the development of these coaches’ capabilities and improve their attributes when they return to their districts and divisions in Bangladesh to continue their work with aspiring footballers. Five-day U23 camp held at Kamalapur Stadium A 5-day residential training camp of Bangladesh U23 national team was arranged from November 12 to 16. The camp was arranged to prepare the boys for the upcoming AFC U23 Championship 2020 qualifiers scheduled to be held from March 22 to March 26, 2019 in Bahrain. The BFF wants to start training the players as early as possible focusing on the tournament. Bangladesh have been drawn into Group B (West Zone) of the qualifiers along with Palestine, Sri Lanka and hosts Bahrain. With the short camp, head coach Jamie Day got a chance to get an idea about the ability and limitations of his players and draw his plan accordingly. Kiron attends AFC Annual Awards in Oman BFF Women’s Football Committee chairperson, BFF executive member, SWAFF executive committee member, AFC executive member and AFC representative to the FIFA Council Mahfuza Akter Kiron attended the AFC Annual Awards 2018 ceremony in Muscat, Oman on November 28. Kiron handed over the award of AFC Women’s Coach of the Year to Japan’s Asako Takakura at the awards ceremony. Asia’s best football personnel were honoured at the spectacular ceremony in Muscat. U15 boys prepare for UEFA friendly tournament Since returning to the country after winning the SAFF U15 Championship 2018, the talented group of players have been under a continuous training camp focusing on improving their tactical ability and mentality. Soon the U15 boys will travel abroad again to participate in a four-nation friendly tournament organized by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). Under the UEFA ASSIST MINI TOURNAMENT PROJECT, Bangladesh will take part in the competition in Project Buriram in Thailand scheduled to begin on December 10, 2018. The Thailand FA is organizing the tournament in collaboration with the UEFA which will feature the Thai team, one team from UEFA which is Cyprus and two teams from the AFC which are Maldives and Bangladesh. Bangladesh will square-off against European rivals Cyprus in their very first match on December 10. Then the Red and Greens will face Thailand on December 12 before playing their last match against Maldives on December 14. BFF signs women’s football sponsorship deal with Dhaka Bank Bangladesh Football Federation has signed an agreement with Dhaka Bank Limited over the sponsorship of women’s football. Dhaka Bank Ltd. Chairman Mr. Reshadur Rahman pledged to stand beside the BFF in taking women’s football forward. I want to thank Dhaka Bank for their support in developing women’s football. Bangladesh Premier League 2018-19 from Jan 2019 Bangladesh Premier League 2018-19, to be hosted in 7 venues across the country, will begin from the first week of January, 2019. The first division league was scheduled to begin from November 30, 2018 but the matches have been rescheduled due to the upcoming national election slated for December 30 this year. The decision was taken following a plea from the participating teams. BFF Lottery prizes given out To raise funds for the development of football in the country, the BFF had arranged the BFF Lottery 2018. The tickets for the lottery were in the market from March 13, 2018. The draw ceremony of the lottery was held on May 26 and the winners were announced. Finally, the promised prizes were handed over to the winners on November 16.
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