Abahani free from FIFA ban, but concerns over new season

After a long wait, Dhaka Abahani has received news of relief. This one of the country's most traditional clubs has been freed from FIFA's ban after paying the dues of foreign players. On Monday, the international football governing body FIFA lifted the last ban. At the same time, Abahani's name has also been removed from FIFA's registration ban list.

However, despite the lifting of the ban, the club has fallen behind in preparations for the new season. Abahani now has to get busy with team formation and player registration.

Why was Abahani banned?

At the beginning of last season, Abahani had problems with paying the dues of foreign players. Due to this, FIFA imposed a total of three bans on the club.

Two of the bans had already been lifted. However, one ban remained in place due to the unpaid dues of a Syrian footballer.

Finally, Abahani paid that dues too. Then, on Monday, FIFA lifted the last ban. As a result, Abahani's name was also removed from the international organization's registration ban list.

Abahani gets the opportunity to register players

With the lifting of the ban, Abahani has been given the opportunity to register players from Wednesday. However, the club has lagged behind others in terms of team formation due to the long process of lifting the ban.

In the meantime, it is reported that some of Abahani's footballers are in contact with Mohammedan and Bashundhara Kings. Abahani has also requested an extension of the player registration deadline to deal with the situation.

Challenge Cup canceled

Although Abahani's ban was lifted, a competition was canceled before the start of the domestic football season.

The Challenge Cup was supposed to start on August 21 with a match between league champions Bashundhara Kings and runners-up Abahani. However, due to FIFA-related complications between both teams, it was not possible to organize the match in the end.

Kings and Mohammedan faced each other in the Challenge Cup in the last two seasons. Bashundhara Kings won the title both times.

Bashundhara Kings face major complications

Although freed from the Abahani ban, Bashundhara Kings are still in big trouble. The report mentions that the club has 10 bans on the FIFA list.

Bashundhara Kings representative and coach Syed Golam Jilani has asked for seven more working days in a meeting with the Bangladesh Football Federation. After the ban is lifted, the club is expected to complete the licensing process and get the opportunity to register players.

Federation Cup and League ahead

The new domestic football season is scheduled to start with the Federation Cup on August 25 and the league on August 28. However, there is uncertainty over the bans and registration complications of various clubs.

The transfer deadline will end on September 3. Due to this, several clubs have objected to the player registration deadline of August 19. They demand that the opportunity to register players be kept until the last day of the transfer window.

Several more clubs under ban

Several more clubs from Bangladesh are on the FIFA list. Among them, Fakirerpool Youngmens, Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi and Soccer Club Feni have been mentioned.

Fakirerpool Youngmens are reportedly unable to participate in the transfer despite receiving permission due to ban-related reasons.

As a result, while the lifting of the ban is a relief for Abahani, the complications surrounding the registration, licensing and transfer of clubs before the start of the new domestic football season in Bangladesh have not yet been completely resolved.