Football mania captivates port city
The MA Aziz Stadium in Chattogram was packed to the rafters yesterday as around 30,000 spectators came to watch the Sheikh Kamal International Club Cup final between Chattogram Abahani and Terengganu FC.
The match was scheduled to begin at 6:00pm but fans, many bearing drums and flutes, flocked to the stadium as early as 3:00pm.
Another 10,000 supporters, who were unable to buy tickets, remained outside.
Seventh grader Tauhidul Islam Ratul fifth grader Sajjad Hossain were two of the lucky few to have managed tickets not just for the final but also almost every other fixture of the tournament.
“I am a big fan of football but I do not get many opportunities to watch football in the stadium here,” Ratul said. “That’s why when I came to know that an international tournament would be held in this stadium [MA Aziz Stadium], I decided that I would attend every match I could.”
Sajjad informed that he watches football on television regularly but had always wanted to witness a match from the stands.
“When I heard about the tournament, I asked my parents for their permission to watch every match [at the stadium] and they gladly accepted it,” said Sajjad.
Iran Barua, who played first division football in the 1980s fir Muktijoddha Krira Chakra, was present in the gallery as well. He praised the tournament organisers and emphasised on the need for more international tournaments in Chattogram.
“The more you organise international tournaments in the city [Chattogram], the more youngsters would be interested to become footballers,” he said. “There was a time when players from Chattogram regularly went on to feature in the national team.
“Star footballers such as Ashish Vadra and Satyajit Das Rupu came from Chattogram but those days are in the past now. Organising more international tournaments would help bring back the glory of Chattogram football,” continued Barua.
Septuagenarian, Ahmed Hussain, remembers the 2015 edition final well. Chattogram Abahani had beaten Kolkata East Bengal 3-1 to clinch the title of the inaugural edition and Hussain was hoping for a repeat this time around.
“I remember watching the match from the gallery and returning home with full content as Chattogram Abahani clinched the trophy by beating Kolkata East Bengal by 3 goals to 1. “Today I have come to see the same...the victory of the host team,” he said.