Collage : BSS

DHAKA, Aug 5, 2025 (BSS) - After one year under the leadership of the interim government headed by Nobel laureate Prof. Muhammad Yunus, Bangladesh's sports sector has found its rhythm once again. 

The past year has witnessed significant changes, both in terms of governance and infrastructure, which have had a positive impact on the country's sporting landscape.

Under the interim administration, significant measures have been taken to rid the sports arena of corruption, which includes innovative approaches and fostering a spirit of adventure.

Youth and Sports Adviser Asif Mahmud Sajib Bhuiyan's strategic leadership has played a crucial role in the transformation of the sports sector, driving progress and change.

The Ministry of Youth and Sports has overseen substantial infrastructural developments, aimed at elevating Bangladesh's sports to new heights. One of the most notable successes has been the launch of the Festival of Youth 2025, an initiative designed to foster unity, cooperation, and self-reliance among the nation's youth.

 The festival, which began on December 30 last year under the theme "Esho Desh Bodlai, Prithibi Bodlai" (Let's Change the Country and Change the World), has been extended through December 31, 2025.

According to the Youth and Sports ministry, at least 2.74 million women and young girls took part in 2,931 sports events and cultural activities across the country. Of the total, at least 855 were football matches and these games were held in some of the remotest parts of the country. Never in the history of Bangladesh have so many women taken part in such a huge number of sports events.

The interim government and local authorities in all of the country's more than 500 rural sub-district towns organised the women's sporting events with much fanfare. Hundreds of thousands of spectators watched these matches in a festive atmosphere.

But even more significantly, the record-breaking participation of female athletes and the thousands of spectators who turned out to cheer them on testify to the breadth and depth of support for women's rights in Bangladeshi society in 2025.

The Ministry of Youth and Sports has also made massive infrastructural developments in the last one year to take the country's sports forward.

According to the source of National Sports Council (NSC), the sports infrastructural developments included further development of National Stadium in Dhaka ((actual progress of the project 100 percent), upgrading of Kabi Jibananada Das Stadium, Brisal to international standard and development of existing district swimming pool project-1 site (under progress), further development of Gaznavi Stadium in Bhola district construction of indoor stadium and swimming pool (under progress), mini stadium construction project at upazilla level (2nd phase), further development of Shibchar upazilla in Madaripur district Char Fashon upazilla in Bhola mini stadium, construction of swimming pool in Gazipur district headquarters (1st revised project), further development of archery training academy in Tongi, Gazipur and district stadium in Patuakhali (under progress), construction of indoor stadium along with further development Chandpur district stadium and swimming pool and construction of indoor stadium and tennis court in Shariatpur district headquarters (under progress). 
  
The Ministry of Youth and Sports has also plan to build sports hub at eight divisional headquarters across the country for preparing international players and organizing sports competitions, along with promoting the country's sports to the global arena.

Talking to BSS, National Sports Council Secretary Aminul Islam said among the fifty five federation and associations we have dissolved committees of 48 federations and formed ad-hoc committee. We have also received proposal to march three federations with three other federations and we issued a notification in this regards. The committees of the two federations are under consideration and we'll issue a notification soon.

Besides at the local stage, there are nearly one thousand and one hundred committee of local sports associations (divisional, district, upazilla and women's sports associations), which we all dissolved the committees and we have already formed ad-hoc committee of fifty seven out of sixty four districts, he added.

The NSC secretary said: "The country's sports got back pace under the leadership of these ad-hoc committees and the youth actively participated in the Festival of Youth. We can now claim that In the last one year we have been able to restore the stability in sports ... we're confident that the pace and mobility in sports arena will increase further with the cooperation of all."

The NSC secretary replying to a question said establishing sports hub in eight divisions across the country is top priority of our Sports Adviser. The Sports Adviser already announced his intention in the different medias to establish sports hub and we have already started to work on it and communicated with Economic Relations Division (ERD) in this regards. Initially, United Arab Emirates has given their consent to fund for sports hub. 
  
It can be mentionable that following the fall of last government on August 5 last year, the Ministry of Youth and Sports formed a search committee to present the necessary reform proposals to the government for the proper management of the activities of the existing federations, associations, boards and organizations in the country's sports arena.

Former national badminton champion Jobaydur Rahman Rana has been kept in the five-member search committee was formed to create ad-hoc committee at all sports federations and associations, dissolving the existing executive committee. The shooting federation is one of the last among fifty two federations to get an ad-hoc committee. However football and cricket have been kept out from the formation. Only the committee of the women's sports association has not been announced yet.

In continuation of that, all district and divisional sports associations, all district and divisional women's sports organizations, all upazila sports association and upazila women's sports association were dissolved within two weeks of the formation of the government and announced ad-hoc committees of fifty two sports federation in order to keep the activities of sports organizations active and uninterrupted. Shooting Federation was the last federation get the ad-hoc committee while the ad-hoc committee of women's sports association yet to announced.

In continuation of that, all district and divisional sports associations, all district and divisional women's sports organizations, all upazila sports association and upazila women's sports association were dissolved within two weeks of the formation of the interim government in order to keep the activities of sports organizations healthy, active and uninterrupted that was the first step by the present government.

The mentioned sports associations are also instructed to form ad-hoc committees involving all eligible athletes and sports related persons.
Besides, Bangladesh women's football team's historic achievement of qualifying Asian Cup final stage and winning back to back SAFF championship crown are considered as the biggest success in sports during the current government's tenure.