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It was a humid Friday night in the Maldives. Ronan Sullivan stood over the ball, 12 yards from the goal, with the tournament on the line. The Bangladesh fans looked on anxiously, ready to erupt in celebration.
To some, it may feel random or even strange that Philadelphia Soccer’s royal family could have such an impact on soccer in South Asia. That said, this moment was a long time coming.
Ronan Sullivan, joined on the Bangladesh Under-20 National Team by his twin brother Declan, are brothers of Quinn and Cavan Sullivan, two of the faces of the Philadelphia Union. The twins, in between their two other brothers in age, are taking a different path. Together, they have committed to play NCAA soccer at St. Joe’s, where their grandfather Larry Sullivan was once head coach. The father of the four Sullivan brothers, Brendan, followed in Larry’s footsteps by playing Division I soccer. Sullivan played for Penn where he met his wife, Heike Krippendorff Sullivan, who was also a soccer player for the Quakers. Her parents are of German and Bangladeshi descent.
While the Sullivan brothers were all born in the United States, their maternal grandmother’s ethnicity grants them all eligibility to play for Germany as well as Bangladesh.
While this may not have been part of the plan for Quinn and Cavan, who have played only for the United States national teams throughout their careers, they were surely made aware of their eligibility to play for Bangladesh by the fanbase. The comments of Quinn’s social media posts continue to be flooded with Bangladesh flags and edits of him wearing the Bangladesh jersey—despite being cap-tied to the United States since last summer. Cavan, the family’s youngest, continues to be pursued by Bangladesh fans despite playing for the United States U-15, U-17, and U-18 National Teams, with all signs pointing toward him making an impact at the senior level one day.
The middle Sullivans, Declan and Ronan, were in a very different situation than their brothers. Bouncing back and forth between the Union Academy and FC Delco, the twins were not as heavily pursued by the United States Youth National Teams as their siblings were. And still, every comment section on their Instagram posts were flooded with green and red flags, full of Bangladesh fans begging for their services.
In March, it was announced that Ronan and Declan had accepted call-ups to the Bangladesh U-20 Men’s National Team for the 2026 SAFF U-20 Championship, making appearances for Bangladesh for the first time. The SAFF Championship is run by the South Asian Football Federation. Bangladesh were one of seven teams in the tournament, including Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan.
The Sullivans made an instant impact in the tournament. In the opening match, Bangladesh faced off against Pakistan. In the second half, Ronan stood over a free kick from 30 yards out. He smashed a brilliant strike into the top right of the goal, sending the traveling Bangladesh fans into a frenzy. Just over ten minutes later, he claimed his second goal, securing the win for the Bengal Tigers in his first appearance.
After a draw to India, Bangladesh advanced to the knockout stage from second place in their group. Ronan continued to be a crucial player in the team, and Declan made his first appearance for Bangladesh off the bench in the tournament semi-final. Both twins played in a narrow 1-0 victory over Nepal, advancing to face India in the final.
After a 1-1 draw to India less than a week prior, the SAFF U-20 Championship final played out similarly to the first meeting between the two teams. With little to separate the two sides and no goals scored, a penalty shootout was needed to determine a winner. After India missed their fifth penalty, Bangladesh had the chance to claim the title with a conversion from the spot. With the trophy on the line, up stepped Ronan Sullivan.
With the confidence of a whole country behind him, Sullivan walked up to the spot and delicately chipped the ball down the middle. The goalkeeper dove out of the way, and the young Ronan Sullivan wheeled away in celebration before the ball even hit the net. Taking his jersey off and running to the corner, Sullivan was swarmed by his teammates and the Bangladesh fans, who celebrated ecstatically. For a nation starved of recent national team success, the Sullivans became heroes overnight in Bangladesh, claiming the country their second ever SAFF U-20 Championship title.
In an Instagram post, Declan thanked the Bengal Tigers fans for the experience. “Proud to have represented Bangladesh for the first time. Special thank you to all of the fans who urged me to start this journey, your support is felt and appreciated. So many of you show up with unmatched passion.”
In the end, the persistence and dedication of the Bangladeshi fanbase was heard, and the call was answered by the Sullivans. Upon the team’s return to Bangladesh, the team was met with an open-top bus parade, greeted by hundreds of fans celebrating the title. Just like that, two kids from Philadelphia became heroes in the eyes of soccer fans all the way out in Bangladesh.
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