BFF resolves clubs’ demands

The professional football clubs demanding the deferment of the upcoming players transfer and a delay to the start of the season are likely to retreat from their stance as the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) promised to provide them more financial benefits than last season.
BFF president Kazi Salahuddin had a meeting with the club representatives yesterday to try to convince them and hope to roll out football on time in line with the schedule that they have declared last month.
“After hearing the problems, I have promised to provide them more financial support and I expect the season will get underway in line with the calendar that the federation has already declared,” said Salahuddin.
The game’s governing body last season disbursed about Tk 10 lakh to the participating 13 clubs, some Tk 3.5 lakh more than in the previous season.
Sheikh Russel president Nurul Alam Chowdhury, Brothers Union manager Amer Khan and the Rahmatganj MFS general secretary met with the BFF president on behalf of the clubs, who had earlier placed a 12-point demand asking the game’s governing body among other things to defer the players’ transfers, start the league in December, dissolve the league committee, disburse advanced participation money, make playable grounds outside the capital.
“The BFF president was positive in the discussions and told us the federation is not against the clubs. I think we have come close to solving the statement between the federation and the clubs after the meeting,” said Nurul Alam Chowdhury.
He said that they informed the president that the clubs would suffer financially due to the payment of the foreign players as well as continuing the camp if there is no football in November because of the national team’s campaign in the Asian Games in China.
Amer Khan informed that the BFF president told them that the federation has to follow the guidelines provided by the Asian Football Confederation and are determined to start the season in October.
“The president has also expressed his wish to scrap Bangladesh’s international schedules if the clubs wants in a bid to continue the domestic league, but we have opposed it saying both the domestic and the international schedules should go simultaneously,” said Amer.
Amer, however, said that they would sit together today to discuss the matter and let the federation know about the stance.
Except Abahani, Mohammedan, Muktijoddha Sangsad, newcomers Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club and Sheikh Russel KC, others clubs placed a 12-point demands to the BFF president and later Sheikh Russel joined in with the lightweights.

Courtesy of The Daily Star