The European Union (EU) has expressed interest in exploring opportunities to become a partner in the development of football in Bangladesh, citing the game’s growing global profile and recent achievements, including the rise of players such as Hamza Choudhury and Shamit Shome, as well as the national women’s team qualifying for the AFC Asian Cup. However, the EU indicated that it would first assess the opportunities, potential and challenges within the country’s football ecosystem.

EU Ambassador Michael Miller attended an exchange meeting at the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) headquarters on Sunday with members of the BFF executive committee, representatives of the women’s wing and women referees. As the next step toward a possible formal partnership, the BFF is expected to submit both short-term and long-term proposals to the EU in the coming days.

Speaking to the media, BFF president Tabith Awal said, “We will present a proposal in the future. Based on that proposal, the European Union authorities will consider how they can work with Bangladesh. However, we want to move into a partnership as quickly as possible.”

“Our football federation has a clear vision, some ongoing formulas, and several success stories. All of these have helped to win the confidence of the decision-makers in the European Union and to explain our position to them more easily. They believe that by contributing to sports, they can also help build goodwill for Bangladesh,” he added.

Describing the discussions as preliminary, EU Ambassador Michael Miller said, “We are here to explore opportunities to sponsor Bangladesh’s football federation. Today’s (Sunday) discussion was preliminary. Bangladesh is going through a very complex time, moving toward an election and facing various challenges. At the same time, it is important to highlight the country’s positive aspects, how young people can build careers for themselves, how the country can develop and move forward, and how, as a nation, it can unite behind its sports teams in world-class competitions. This is the kind of work we want to do with you, so that in the future you can come together as a nation and play as one team, making the best use of your talent.”