The domestic football season for 2024-25 was initially set to commence on 11th October with the Bashundhara Kings facing Mohammedan Sporting Club (MSC) in the Challenge Cup match. Both teams have been preparing diligently for this fixture.
However, an emergency meeting of the professional league committee on Tuesday has resulted in a delay of the upcoming football season by one and a half months.
A scheduled meeting on Saturday was cancelled due to heavy rain, prompting the committee to convene online in the afternoon. The domestic season has now been postponed to the last week of November due to a shortage of available venues and other logistical issues.
Additionally, the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) elections are set for 26th October. Following the elections, all Standing Committees will be reconstituted, meaning the decision to start the new season will largely rest with the new committee.
The upcoming season of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) will feature ten teams, requiring at least five venues to host the matches. Currently, the BFF has confirmed Bashundhara Kings and Rafiquddin Ahmed Bhuiyan Stadium in Mymensingh as official venues. Potential venues in Comilla, Munshiganj, Gazipur, and Manikganj have yet to receive official confirmation from the BFF.
League committee Chairman Imrul Hasan cited venue readiness as the primary reason for the delay, stating, “The venues we have nominated for the upcoming season are not ready yet.
As the venues are not ready, it has been decided to start the season at the end of November instead of October 11 on the application of the clubs and the overall context.”
The BFF does not own any venues. With the main venue, Bangabandhu National Stadium (BNS), undergoing renovations, the federation has been utilising district stadiums for the past three seasons. These stadiums fall under the National Sports Council (NSC) and are supervised by the District Sports Association (DSA). The chairman of the league committee expressed hope that the fields would be prepared in collaboration with local authorities within the next month and a half.
Football clubs had requested a slight delay to the season's start. Initially, the BFF decided to commence the season on 11th October, a week later than the original 4th October date. The Challenge Cup was scheduled for 11th October at King's Arena, followed by the Federation Cup on 15th October and the league on 18th October.
Many clubs had already begun their training based on the previous schedule. The new decision to delay the season will inevitably increase the costs for these clubs.
