We have regularised football and made it year-round that is what I promised when I took charge. Players are now earning more money. Back at that time, footballers used to get Tk 2-3 lakhs per season each but they now earn Tk 60-70 lakhs.

— Kazi Salahuddin told after being elected for the fourth consecutive term as the BFF boss in October 2020.

Even in its 14th year, the Bangladesh Premier League is struggling to find its identity in the world of professional football. After being instructed to do so by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), the Bangladesh Football Federation introduced a professional football league in 2007. The belief was that it would allow clubs to set new benchmarks on the field as well financially and in terms of infrastructure and administration. But objectives have not been met in the past 13 years and even the ongoing 14th Bangladesh Premier League is struggling to roll on smoothly following a dispute over venues two weeks after the league began. The Bangladesh Premier League still lacks a lot and the federation appears reluctant to meet the criteria of professionalism. So the most satisfactory aspect remains that the league is at least being held every season and the players are at least earning a living through the sport.

There are a lot of problems. I think overall professionalism has to be improved. We, the players, have nothing to do except playing in the way they are running the BPL right now.

— Jamal Bhuiyan

LEAGUE STANDARDS

Complaints about the organisation of the Bangladesh Premier League are rife, with organisers failing to settle on rules despite 13 years of experience. Among those are the number of participating teams, the number of teams to be relegated, the foreign players' quota and even the timetable. The constant shuffling of the rules even forced one club to seek, and receive, justice from the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

The committee has even prolonged seasons to 10 months by interrupting the league, leaving clubs with no choice but to pay more to foreign players while also giving local players no room to breathe.

 The standard of football, when measured by either the national team's results or club achievements in international tournaments, has not improved, but the league has become more competitive.

The league has improved a bit compared to the early editions of the competition but we need to be improved a lot when it comes to professionalism. We, players, are pleased to play BPL in every season but the clubs must improve in terms of professionalism. Four to five top clubs have been showing some signs towards professionalism but it would be really good if the rest of the clubs also show the same tendency.

— Tapu Barman

FINANCIAL CONDITION

Financial constraints have undoubtedly been a significant hindrance towards professionalism, but clubs in Bangladesh have never attempted to gain financial liberty by merchandising their products or exploring other ventures. Instead, they continue to rely on donations from wealthy stakeholders and run their clubs on a season-by-season basis.

22 clubs have so far taken part in the professional football league since 2007, but the league had to be confined to Dhaka because Dhaka-based clubs were unwilling to play outside the capital, citing financial constraints. However, this has not stopped the wages of players from skyrocketing. The few top players, especially those in the national football team, secure contracts ranging between Tk 70 lakh and Tk 90 lakh per season. Other players can earn between Tk 10 lakh to Tk 30 lakh.

YOUTH DEVELOPMENT

While all the clubs have age-group or youth teams in line with their club licensing agreements, it appears to be only on paper. The clubs do not provide training or coaching around the year. It is not unusual for clubs to only bring in young players as needed, shaping them up for a month or two before the rare age-level tournament.

In terms of competitions, there is little interest from any concerned party in holding a regular league or tournaments that could give young players an ideal breeding ground. The Bangladesh Football Federation's own Under-18 Football Tournament has not been held since 2019.