Swadhinata KS to return to BCL football

Published at 06:28 pm February 4th, 2020

Following an emergency meeting of the BFF executive committee held Tuesday, it was also revealed that two new clubs - Uttara FC and Forty’s Sports Academy Limited – would be included in the upcoming second-tier league

The Bangladesh Football Federation has decided to keep Swadhinata Krira Sangha in the upcoming Bangladesh Championship League, despite the club being relegated from the second-tier last season with a bottom-ranked finish.

Following an emergency meeting of the BFF executive committee held Tuesday, it was also revealed that two new clubs - Uttara Football Club and Forty’s Sports Academy Limited – would be included in the upcoming second-tier league.

Neither club have any experience playing in the domestic structure.

The BFF also announced that the kick-off date of the Bangladesh Championship League 2019-20 will be March 28, with 14 teams taking part in the competition.

Eight of the teams are from last season.

The transfer window for players will be held from February 10 to March 20.

Julio Cesar attended the semi-final of this year’s Bangabandhu Gold Cup on January 23 and shared his experience on the field with goalkeepers from top-flight teams and their women’s youth sides.https://t.co/aYmEEfFktW #CESAR #JULIO #JULIOCESAR #FOOTBALL #BANGLADESH #BFF #CBF
— Dhaka Tribune Sports (@Sport_DT) February 1, 2020

Swadhinata finished at the bottom of the 11-team 2018-19 season with 17 points from 20 matches, two less than other relegated team Feni Soccer Club.

Champion Police FC and runners-up Uttar Baridhara Club have been promoted to the top-flight.

“We have a fixed window where the clubs applied to participate after fulfilling club licensing criteria. The First Instance Body (FIB) checked the documents before selecting the clubs and there is an appeal body for those who were rejected. We found 14 clubs eligible for the BCL,” BFF general secretary Abu Nayeem Shohag said after the meeting.

The other participating clubs are Nofel Sporting Club and Team Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation, who were relegated from the Bangladesh Premier League, Farashganj Sporting Club, T & T Club, Victoria SC, Agrani Bank Limited SC, Fakirerpool Youngmen’s Club, Dhaka City FC, Wari Club, Kawranbazar Pragati Sangha and Dhaka Wonderers Club.

The last two teams were promoted from the Senior Division League.

According to BFF by-laws, the top finisher will be promoted to the BPL while the two bottom-ranked sides will be relegated to the Senior Division League.