Local booters seeking solutions for haphazard payments

Although Bangladesh Premier League clubs settled contract issues with foreign recruits in line with the FIFA-prescribed process of reaching mutual understandings, settlement of local players' contracts have not been completed three-and-a-half months since the halt of the league.

Local players have been suffering financially due to not receiving salaries and also not having the option to play football on hire to supplement their income. They are eager to reach amicable solutions and want the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) involved in the process of settling their contracts for the 2019-20 season, which was declared void on May 17.

In the last meeting of the professional football league on May 17, clubs proposed playing their squads from this year in the upcoming season as only 24 per cent of league matches could be played and only the Federation Cup could be completed.

There were also discussions about curtailing players' wages and question were raised about what could be done about players who had received up to 90 per cent of their contractual earnings. It has been learnt Abahani, Bashundhara Kings and Saif SC were among the big clubs that cleared up to 80 per cent of wages in line with original contracts. Other clubs have cleared between 20 and 50 per cent.

"Arambagh formed their team at the last moment and I joined Arambagh at a person's request. Most of the young players signed on condition of getting a platform and a nominal sum to buy gear. There were a few players under contract but we did not get only 20 to 30 percent of payment. Arambagh officials are in financial trouble but we believe they will clear it and we are waiting," said former national team defender Didarul Haque."

"Three senior players, including me, haven't received any money from Brothers Union. I know other players received 20 to 30 percent of the payment. And the players called me to inform of their suffering in this pandemic, but the financial state of Brothers is also not good," said Brothers Union right-back Arup Kumar Baddya, adding that players of only three or four clubs received handsome payments.

"The issue of payments has always been a source of trouble for players. Even I did not get the full amount from Chittagong Abahani and this problem has been exacerbated by the pandemic. I have personally got 50 percent payment, but I don't know about others. We were supposed to get a payment before Eid-ul-Fitr but we haven't received anything," Sheikh Jamal defender Kesto Kumr Bosh said.

"Although I received 50 percent of the payment, that is not the case for other players. Clubs don't look after players," Uttar Baridhara striker Bishal Das said.

Former national captain and current national midfielder Mamunul Islam has been given the responsibility to bring all the players under one umbrella and place their demands before BFF president Kazi Salahuddin. They have already given a letter to the secretariat seeking an appointment with the president.

"We want a solution in line with FIFA's prescription so that no party is damaged. Players are ready to sacrifice their contracts a bit as the foreign players did. But we want players who have a contract less than 10 lakh to be kept out of the process and for clubs to clear their payment completely. We also want assurances about next season as many footballers are going through financial trouble," Mamunul said.