The Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) has scrapped relegation from last season's Bangladesh Football League (BFL) and promoted three clubs from the Bangladesh Championship League (BCL), citing uncertainty surrounding the participation of Bashundhara Kings and Abahani in the upcoming season.

FIFA bans threaten Kings and Abahani’s BFL participation, with the club licensing deadline looming on August 4.

If Bangladesh is serious about competing beyond South Asia, the transformation must begin at home.

The registration window will remain open for more than nine weeks, until September 3.

While Kings have dropped points in two of their seven second-leg matches amid off-field disruptions, Abahani have been flying high, recording seven consecutive wins.

The high-stakes Bangladesh Football League clash between holders Bashundhara Kings and Bangladesh Police on Friday was overshadowed by a lengthy interruption caused by confusion over the eligibility of foreign players.

The government is set to launch a new grassroots initiative, Notun Kuri Sports, aimed at engaging young people across the country in sporting activities and nurturing talented athletes.

Dorielton Gomes scored his 14th goal of the campaign as Bashundhara Kings re-established a three-point lead at the top of the Bangladesh Football League with a 1-0 win over Brothers Union at the Kings Arena on Saturday.

League leaders Bashundhara Kings stumbled in the Bangladesh Football League (BFL), playing out a 1-1 draw against Rahmatganj in Munshiganj on Friday after being forced to field an all-local eleven as their foreign recruits skipped the crucial tie over alleged unpaid wages .

Malian forward Souleymane Diabate struck against his former club to deliver a crucial win for Abahani, who came from behind to beat archrivals Mohammedan 2-1 in a Bangladesh Football League clash at the Shaheed Dhirendranath Datta Stadium in Cumilla on Friday.

At the Bashundhara Kings Arena, the match was a truly topsy-turvy battle and a heated affair from the opening whistle, characterised by a physical intensity that kept the crowd on the edge of their seats throughout the ninety minutes.

Defending champions Mohammedan Sporting Club’s struggles continued in the Bangladesh Football League as the Black and Whites were held to a 1-1 draw by Bangladesh Police in their third meeting of the season at Shaheed Dhirendranath Datta Stadium in Cumilla on Friday.

Heavyweights Bashundhara Kings and Abahani resumed the second phase of the Bangladesh Football League with victories, while some minnows stumbled as the league returned after a two-month break with matches held at four venues on Friday.

On the opening day, five-time champions Bashundhara Kings are likely to face a stiff challenge from newcomers PWD SC at the Kings Arena.

The Bangladesh Football League (BFL) is set to resume on March 6, two months after the completion of the first phase of the country’s top-tier football competition, but several clubs are unhappy with the revised schedule.

The top-tier competition has been on hold since the first phase ended on January 3.

Across the window, seven clubs completed 49 new signings

With the mid-term transfer window of the Bangladesh Football League (BFL) set to close on January 31, the league’s smaller outfits are moving decisively to reshape the title race and relegation battles, capitalising on a rare opening created by restrictions on the country’s traditional powerhouses.

Days after deciding to resume the second phase of the Bangladesh Football League (BFL) and the Federation Cup matches a week or so before the national elections, the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) has deferred those domestic football matches indefinitely.

Bangladesh will play either Cambodia or East Timor in a FIFA international friendly ahead of their final AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers match against Singapore in March.