Staff Reporter:
The Dhaka sky had long surrendered to dusk by the time the champions finally touched down, but the roar that greeted them illuminated the night.
Running a fraction behind schedule, the flight bearing the Bangladesh Under-20 men’s football team kissed the tarmac of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at seven o’clock on Saturday evening.
It was a wait the gathered throngs were more than willing to endure.
Stepping into a blitz of flashbulbs and a shower of floral wreaths, the young squad held aloft their back-to-back SAFF U-20 Men’s Championship trophy, crossing a new threshold in the country’s sporting history.
In a landmark moment for the nation’s game, they became the first Bangladeshi men’s football team to be honoured with a grand, open-top bus parade.
The anticipation had been building since dawn.
At the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) home, preparations had been humming along with quiet efficiency.
Fresh banners adorned the flanks of the open-top bus, whilst the Hatirjheel Amphitheatre awaited its heroes, swathed in vibrant, colourful lights.
When captain Mithu Chowdhury emerged through the VIP gates, proudly displaying the hard-won silverware, the magnitude of the achievement was palpable.
He led his teammates onto the waiting vehicle, warmly received by the State Minister for Youth and Sports, Aminul Haque, and BFF president Tabith Awal, who were on hand to officially welcome the boys home.
As the convoy wound its way towards Hatirjheel, the journey swiftly evolved into a moving carnival.
Thousands of supporters lined the capital’s streets, their chants piercing the evening air as they sought to capture a piece of history.
It was a fitting, poetic extension of a tradition birthed in 2022 by the national women’s team, who first graced an open-top bus following their own SAFF triumph.
That celebration was repeated in 2024 and again this past January for the women’s futsal squad.
Now, the men had undeniably earned their own procession through the heart of the city.
The rapturous reception served as the perfect curtain call to an imperious, unbeaten campaign in Male.
The young Tigers’ path to the final was forged with grit, navigating past Pakistan with a measured victory, securing a hard-fought 1-1 draw against India in the group stages, and dismantling Nepal with clinical precision in the semi-finals.
Friday’s final, a rematch against India, was a masterclass in control.
Bangladesh dictated the tempo and relentlessly probed the Indian defence, yet despite their dominance, regulation time ended in a tense, goalless stalemate.
In tournament football, dominance must eventually be translated into numbers, and so the match spilt into the unforgiving crucible of a penalty shootout.
Goalkeeper Ismail Hossain Mahin set down an early marker, producing a superb save to deny India’s opening spot-kick.
Although a subsequent miss by midfielder Samuel Raksham offered their rivals a fleeting glimmer of hope, the night belonged to Bangladesh.
It was left to Ronan Sullivan to provide the decisive touch.
Exhibiting a coolness that belied his years, he sealed the 4-3 victory with a breathtakingly audacious Panenka, chipping the ball effortlessly down the middle and sparking wild delirium on the pitch.
Much of the credit for that unyielding spirit must go to the expatriate Bangladeshi fans, who transformed the national Maldivian stadium into a sea of red and green, rendering every fixture a de facto home game.
They had sung themselves hoarse in the stands on Friday and returned in their droves on Saturday morning to bid the squad a triumphant farewell.
By the time the team bus rolled into the glowing amphitheatre in Dhaka, the terraces were packed to the rafters.
It was a golden evening for Bangladeshi football, and a thoroughly deserved homecoming for a squad that has firmly cemented its place in the sun.
