"For a country of 174 million people, Bangladesh has generally underachieved in the international sporting arena, but it is now starting to make waves in women's football. In July, the senior team qualified for the 2026 Asian Cup for the first time and this month, the under-20 team reached their continental championship, also for the first time. Playing a part in this success is the Rangatungi United Women's Football Academy in the remote north of the country, that was founded by one man in 2014."
"Mohammad Tajul Islam is not a wealthy businessman but a former teacher and farmer with a social conscience. "Before I started the academy, there was nothing," he told DW. "I was a football fan, and I wanted to give opportunities as I could see that women's football could be powerful in Bangladesh." This is starting to happen. The academy had three players in each of the two teams that qualified for the Asian Cups."
""I always had a dream to be a footballer but my parents did not agree due to our social and religious environment," Sagorika told DW, adding that, in the beginning, her family wanted her to go and get a job and earn money as soon as possible. For Tajul Islam, the challenge was always persuading, usually low-income, families that girls could play football."
Bangladesh's women's football has made historic progress with the senior team qualifying for the 2026 Asian Cup and the under-20 team reaching their continental championship for the first time. The Rangatungi United Women's Football Academy, founded in 2014 in the remote north by Mohammad Tajul Islam, has contributed multiple players to national squads. Tajul Islam is a former teacher and farmer who persuaded low-income families to allow girls to play. The academy produced three players in each qualifying team and nurtured rising star Mosammat Sagorika, who scored four under-20 qualifying goals and is established at senior international level.
Read at www.dw.com
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