Local Football 2018 Timeline

January: Abahani Limited lift their sixth premier league crown in 10 attempts with a remarkable comeback in the second phase of the title race.

February: The national team camp is called for the first time in more than a year and half with Andrew Ord as head coach. Arambagh Krira Sangha stun all the big clubs by clinching the Independence Cup title.

March: Bangladesh end 17-month international drought against Laos on the 27th. Prior to that, the national team held residential training camps in Qatar and Thailand, played practice matches against the domestic clubs.

April: Bangladesh U-15 women’s team become unbeaten champion in a four-nation international tournament in Hong Kong, scoring a total of 24 goals en route to massive wins against Malaysia, Iran and host Hong Kong.

May: Abahani conclude their AFC Cup campaign with the defeat against Bengaluru FC at home in the last group stage fixture.

June: Having been announced as new head coach the previous month, English coach Jamie Day officially takes charge of the national team.

July: National team tour Qatar and South Korea for training camps and play practice matches which continues till the next month’s Asian Games in Indonesia.  

August: Bangladesh make it to the Asian Games knockout-round for the first time in history after promising displays. The women’s team finish runners-up in the Saff U-15 Championship conceding a narrow 1-0 defeat against India in the final.

September: Female booters emerge as the champion in the Saff U-18 Championship beating Nepal 1-0 in the final in Bhutan. Bangladesh young girls also retain their glory in the AFC U-16 Women’s Championship Qualifiers maintaining a 100% winning record against Vietnam, Bahrain, the UAE and Lebanon, scoring 27 goals without conceding any. Bangladesh see a shocking exit from the Saff Championship opening round once again.

October: The fifth edition of the Bangabandhu Gold Cup takes places with the participation of six national teams for the first time. The host were unlucky to get top-ranked and eventual winner Palestine in the semi-final in Cox’s Bazar after the group phase matches are held in Sylhet, followed by the final in Dhaka.

November: The new domestic season begins with Abahani claiming hat-trick of Federation Cup titles to qualify for the 2019 AFC Cup as the lone representative from Bangladesh.

December: Rising powerhouse Bashundhara Kings conclude the year with the Independence Cup title in their debut season.