Ticketholders denied entry
Although the Sylhet District Stadium was partly empty during the Bangabandhu Gold Cup opener between Bangladesh and Laos, a good number of the spectators were deprived of their right to enter the galleries and watch the host's match against Philippines, despite owning match-day tickets.
An enthusiastic weekend crowd packed the 25,000-capacity stadium to the rafters yesterday, which had much to do with Bangladesh's 1-0 win over Laos on the opening day. And so, many individuals were turned away at the gates even though they had tickets.
There was no space left to stand in the galleries as spectators even stood on the top of the stands and in front of the fence to watch the home side, who thanked the fans as they waved to them after the match. In reply, the crowd gave them a standing ovation in spite of the 1-0 loss to Philippines.
Sylhet District Football Association president Mahiuddin Ahmed Selim was forced to announce that he will pay back the spectators who failed to enter the stadium at double the cost of their tickets.
“We had provided some complimentary tickets for the school students, that's why we could not accommodate all the spectators,” said Selim, who however claimed they sold only 23,000 tickets.
There were also whispers, which Selim said were unfounded, that the Sylhet DFA sold more tickets than allotted while some spectators may have entered the stadium without tickets.
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