Top four WFL clubs to get BFF voting rights

Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF), on Friday, decided to award voting rights to top four finishers of ongoing Women's Football League in the upcoming BFF elections, which is expected to take place in either October or November this year.

"One of the proposals was to increase delegations of Bangladesh Football Federation through the women's football league and the meeting decided to award councillorships to top four teams of the ongoing league subject to approval in the annual general meeting, which is scheduled to be held on June 29, 2024," BFF vice-president Ataur Rahman Bhuiyan Manik told reporters after a three-hour meeting of BFF executive committee.

In the last BFF elections in 2020, 139 out of 149 delegates had voting rights for electing a 21-member BFF committee. After the completion of the June AGM, the BFF will announce another fresh AGM and election date.

Replying to a query, Manik said, "Actually we had earlier discussed about the BFF councillorships in many meetings over the last one year and we decided not to trim councillorship. We have informed FIFA of our decision. Now, we have taken the decision to award councillorship to four teams of women's league on the basis of general discussion in the board meeting."

The meeting also decided to relegate one club from the ongoing 10-team Bangladesh Premier League instead of two. The reason for that is Gopalganj Sporting Club's withdrawal from the league prior to the start of the season.

Asked whether the clubs will have double voting rights if they play in both women's and men's leagues, Manik said, "We have already sought clarification from the FIFA about it and will take a decision according to FIFA guidelines."

However, the meeting cancelled professional league management committee's proposal to have an under-18 player mandatorily in the starting eleven of the Bangladesh Premier League teams. The meeting also fixed the age of footballers in the Pioneer Football League (U-14), Third Division Football League (U-16) and Second Division Football League (U-20).