ZCZC
BSP-18
FOOTBALL-DOMESTIC-REVIEW
Buoyant year of country’s domestic football
DHAKA, Dec 29, 2018 (BSS)- Domestic football of the country has seen its
ups and downs in the year-2018 with Bangladesh Premier League, BCL,
Independence Cup, Federation Cup are the center of attention in the domestic
league fixture this year.
The year started with Dhaka Abahani Limited’s win. The team won the title
of Bangladesh Premiere League of season 2017. They bagged their sixth title
with one match remaining showing exemplary professionalism and passion for
the beautiful game. Sheikh Jamal finished runners-up with 47 points. Old
Dhaka outfit Farashganj Sporting Club was relegated to the senior division
with only 17 points from 22 matches.
The next big domestic knock out based tournament held in January 16 was
Independence Cup 2018, sponsored by Walton Group. The Final match of the
tournament was between Arambagh Krira Sangha and Chittagong Abahani Ltd.
Arambagh shocked Chittagong Abahani to claim their first ever Independence
cup title. Arambagh dominated the whole match and claimed their much deserved
victory. The champions added a whole new dimension to the domestic league
spectrum of Bangladesh Football.
The Walton Federation Cup-2018 powered by premier Bank LTD commenced from
October 27, 2018 with total 13 teams participating. This year, the prize
money for the winning team was set at BDT 5 lakh and runners up team would be
awarded BDT 3 lakh.
In the onset match of the tournament Chittagong Abahani and Rahmatganj MFC
faced off in what was an exciting match throughout. The semi-final match
between Abahani Ltd. Dhaka and Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi witnessed a score line
of 4-2, the highest in the tournament.
The two finalists, Abahani Ltd. Dhaka and Bashundhara Kings, faced off
against each other in a nail biting match that took place on November 23,
2018. Abahani clenched victory with a score line of 3-1 and won their third
consecutive Federation Cup title.
The second Independence Cup tournament of 2018 started with its first match
on December 1. Although the tournament is a seasonal one, this is the second
Independence Cup that is going to be staged in the same calendar year.
Recently concluded Federation Cup runners-up Bashundhara Kings clinched
the title of the Independence Cup beating top-flight giants Sheikh Russel
Krira Chakra by 2-1 goals in the keenly contested final.
Overall it was a busy year for country’s domestic football. All the
scheduled matches and tournaments were carried out without any major hiccups.
At the moment, the future seems bright for Bangladesh domestic leagues and
the fans wait for more blockbuster football in the New Year.
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