After securing their place in the AFC Women鈥檚 Asian Cup for the first time, the Bangladesh national team, who are two-time SAFF champions, now have the opportunity to aim higher by qualifying for the FIFA World Cup 2027 and the Olympics 2028.
Bangladesh have qualified for the tournament, which will be held in Australia in March 2026, after beating two higher-ranked teams, Myanmar 2-1 and Bahrain 7-0, in the qualifiers, now being held in Yangon.
Peter Butler鈥檚 charges earned six points from two wins and ensured that Bangladesh will finish top of four-team Group C, regardless of the outcome of their final match against Turkmenistan on Saturday.
In the match against 55th-ranked Myanmar on Wednesday, forward Ritu Porna Chakma (19th, 72nd minutes) scored a brace, helping 128-ranked Bangladesh book their ticket down under.
Myanmar midfielder Win Win pulled one goal back for the hosts one minute from the final whistle at the Thuwunna Stadium in Yangon.
Ritu, who has played a key role in Bangladesh鈥檚 SAFF Women鈥檚 Championship success in 2022 and 2024, also scored one in their win over 92-ranked Bahrain.
With their two victories and a superior head-to-head record, Bangladesh became the first team from among 34-nation qualifiers to reach the 12-team Women鈥檚 Asian Cup.
Bangladesh joined the ranks of defending champions China, as well as South Korea and Japan, to play in the Asian Cup, from where all the quarter-finalists will get entries to the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, while the top six teams will earn their places in the 2027 FIFA Women鈥檚 World Cup in Brazil.
Bangladesh have already proved their supremacy in the sub-continent by claiming all the age-level tournaments before winning back-to-back SAFF titles under Golam Rabbani Choton and Butler in 2022 and 2024, respectively.
Though Butler faced huge criticism for dropping veteran forward and captain of the SAFF winning titles Sabina Khatun and a four other players for the qualifiers in Myanmar, the Englishman proved that his decision was right.聽
The journey was also not a piece of cake for Bangladesh, as the country has no women鈥檚 professional league to date.
The players, primarily recruited from primary school football events and the JFA Under-14 tournaments, reside at the Bangladesh Football Federation dormitory year-round to maintain their training camp.
They seldom have the opportunity to participate in FIFA international friendlies, which sometimes resulted in them being positioned at the bottom of the FIFA rankings since their inclusion in the list in 2011. They played their inaugural international match in 2010 against Nepal.
Their recent success in Yangon has ignited optimism, yet the journey to the World Cup or the Olympics remains challenging. Nevertheless, Bangladesh鈥檚 wins over higher-ranked teams such as Myanmar and Bahrain certainly allow them to aspire towards their goals.
