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FIFA president Gianni Infantino has praised Bangladesh’s love for football, recalling the celebrations surrounding the national team’s 2-1 friendly victory over San Marino in June during a brief transit stop in Dhaka on Sunday.
Infantino, who arrived in the capital from Morocco en route to Thimphu, Bhutan, said Bangladesh’s passion for the game was evident from the moment one landed in the country. He also expressed optimism that further investment and development projects could help take football to the next level.
“Everyone here loves football, everyone here loves the game, and you can feel it from the first moment you land, when you come, when you speak with the people. It’s just fantastic,” Infantino said during his visit.
The FIFA chief was received at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport by Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) president Tabith Awal and senior members of the federation’s executive committee.
Although his visit was limited to a two-hour transit stop, Infantino praised the efforts of the BFF leadership to develop the game and said Bangladesh deserved greater investment in both men’s and women’s football.
“I’m very happy today to be here to meet with the president of the Bangladesh Football Federation, President Tabith Awal. Great friend, doing a great job as well, together with his board, together with his team to bring football in Bangladesh to the next level,” he said.
“That’s what the people of Bangladesh deserve. Men’s football, women’s football, girls, boys, a lot of projects, a lot of investments in schools, in infrastructure, training centre, planning, and so on and so forth.”
Infantino said discussions had taken place on potential development initiatives and expressed confidence that more projects would follow.
“We’ve been discussing about all of this and we will put in place all these great projects for football in Bangladesh,” he said.
The FIFA president also recalled Bangladesh’s 2-1 victory over San Marino in an international friendly in June, when a large contingent of expatriate Bangladeshis travelled from across Europe to support the national team.
Infantino said the travelling support helped the match generate record revenue and attract the biggest crowd in San Marino’s history for a football game.
“I’ve been watching as well, of course, the international friendly in San Marino last June, where San Marino registered actually their best-ever revenues and crowd for a football match because all Bangladeshis from the whole of Europe probably came to watch that game,” he said.
“Bangladesh won against San Marino 2-1 and it was a big, big, big celebration in San Marino, in neighbouring Italy, for the fans, for the players, for everyone involved.”
The support in San Marino offered a striking example of the following Bangladesh’s national team commands among expatriates, even as the side continues to strive for greater success on the international stage.
“It shows how football unites the world, it shows how football has a big impact everywhere, and I’m really grateful to everyone here in Bangladesh for the fantastic work that is done. And there is more to come,” Infantino added.
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