Crisis hits women's football in Bangladesh

For any footballer, qualifying for the World Cup is a dream. The Zambian footballers had dreams too. In the 1994 World Cup qualifiers, the country was playing outstanding football. On April 27, 1993, the Zambian national football team was traveling by special flight to Senegal for an away match. A horrific accident occurred, and all passengers aboard the plane perished, causing the loss of a generation full of football talent. Zambia, which had defeated Italy by 4-0 in the 1988 Olympics, still has not tasted the World Cup experience.

The 32-year-old Zambian football tragedy is being referred because of the Bangladesh women's football team! There is no doubt that the current team is the best in the history of Bangladesh football. The team has tasted success at every level of youth football in South Asia. Through back-to-back SAFF wins, Bangladesh is the top team in the region. The team has also had success on the Asian stage in youth football. However, what if this Bangladesh team is completely changed? You may be struggling to make sense of it, but such concerns are indeed being raised!

The fear of a complete overhaul of the team is actually being raised due to the tension between the women footballers and the Bangladesh Football Federation (BAFUF) officials, centered around head coach Peter Butler. It is clear that the senior players do not want British coach Peter Butler, but the BFF has appointed the 58-year-old Butler as the head coach of the women’s team. With a part-time role, Peter Butler led Bangladesh to a SAFF Championship victory. Before that, he came to Bangladesh as the head coach of the BFF Elite Academy. After his contract with the academy ended, he was appointed as the coach of the women's team. Butler recently arrived in the country. Before taking over his duties, he wanted to meet with the players, and that’s where the complications began.

The female footballers boycotted the meeting and the training sessions, hoping to assert their stance. If BFF officials take a tough position in return, conflict is inevitable. This conflict could lead to major changes in the women’s national team. The senior players, if they take a hard line, might even be excluded, with thoughts of forming an alternative national team. One of the coaching staff mentioned, "BFF has instructed us to talk to all the girls and make sure they want to be part of normal operations." There seems to be a hint of tension in those words! The fear of significant changes in the senior team arises precisely because of this.

The way the situation surrounding the national team is unfolding, only time will determine where it will end. However, it is clear that this won’t bring any positive outcomes for Bangladesh football. The complexities have reached a point where one side must back down for normalcy to return to women’s football in the country. If both sides remain firm in their positions, it could be a sign of trouble. This is a signal that football enthusiasts in the country would certainly not want to see.

The instability at the highest level of women’s football comes at a time when reports are emerging of obstacles faced by women’s football events due to opposition from conservative groups. Similar incidents have occurred in Hakimpur in Dinajpur and Akkelpur in Joypurhat. Religious extremism is emerging. Who knows how many more such incidents we will have to witness? There is turmoil at both the grassroots and the highest levels. Suddenly, the future of women's football in the country has been clouded over! However, in the recent past, women's football had been a source of pride for Bangladesh.

Bangladesh became the AFC U-14 Asian Regional Champions. They secured a place in the top eight in Asia twice in the U-17 age category by winning their group in the AFC U-16 Women's Championship qualifiers. Bangladesh has won all the SAFF age-group titles. Until 2022, the only regret was about the senior SAFF Championship. Under the coaching of Golam Rabbani Choton, that regret was eliminated. Under Peter Butler's coaching, Bangladesh successfully defended the SAFF Championship title in 2024.

Before this success, the tension between British coach Peter Butler and the senior women footballers came to the forefront. This happened last October during the SAFF Championship in Nepal. However, the beginning of this conflict dates back four months earlier, in June, during a friendly match against Chinese Taipei. In the first match at Bashundhara Kings Arena, Peter Butler included Sabina Khatun in the starting lineup, but after halftime, she was not brought onto the field. In the second match of the two-match series, Sabina was left on the bench while the British coach picked his starting eleven. Pushing her out of the starting lineup was a clear message — fame or star status doesn't matter, you have to prove your worth to play.

This is how modern football works. In this realm, the coach’s decision is final. Butler, who has experience coaching in English clubs like Huddersfield Town, West Ham United, and West Bromwich Albion, tried to implement the same approach. But this is Bangladesh, a country where things don’t always go as expected. In the SAFF Championship, the coach initially disregarded the senior players in the first match. On the field, Bangladesh was struggling. After a narrow draw against Pakistan, Butler’s position became shaky. Players started saying, "The coach can't tolerate the senior players." In the next match, Butler included the senior players, and the team delivered a much-improved performance. Bangladesh dominated India 3-1 and secured a spot in the semifinals. The rest, as they say, is history — the team returned home from Nepal as the SAFF champions, successfully defending their title.

Celebrating the trophy on an open-roof bus after the championship victory. A subsequent reception. Beneath these events lay the tension between the coach and the players. This tension became apparent when Peter Butler returned as the head coach of the women’s team for a new term. The 58-year-old coach, upon his return to Dhaka, sent a clear message to his supporting staff: "Forget what happened in the past. We are starting fresh." On January 28, Tuesday, a team meeting was scheduled with the players, but no player attended. At 1:30 PM, when the coaching staff went to the meeting room, the players did not show up. After waiting for 30 minutes, the coaching staff left the room.

The players' boycott of the team meeting made it clear that the tension, which began in June, had been simmering like a fire under the ashes. As the fire visibly started to burn, Kamrul Islam Hilton, a member of the BFF Executive Committee, issued a strong message. His words summarized the situation: "The coach has been appointed by BFF. Everything will run according to BFF’s instructions. The team management will not be guided by the players’ wishes." The message was clear—if anyone has objections to playing under Peter Butler, they will be removed from the camp.

It is rumored that the players will be given a "show cause" notice for their actions. There are also whispers that, in response to the notice, the players might announce their collective retirement from the national team. In 2022, just 191 days after winning the first SAFF title, Bangladesh made negative headlines for not sending the women’s team to the Olympic qualifiers due to financial constraints. Now, just 91 days after securing the 2024 SAFF Championship, the team is once again in the news for negative reasons.

Mahbub Sarkar: Sports Journalist.