Swadhin Bangla Football Dal player Saidur Rahman Patel breathed his last at a hospital in California, USA, on Thursday, confirmed the Bangladesh Football Federation through a media release.
He was 73.
Patel, who had been suffering from cancer for over a year, was admitted to the hospital on July 27. He left behind one son, one daughter, and hosts of well-wishers to mourn his death.聽
Patel, who was born in Keraniganj, Dhaka, on October 7, 1951, was also one of the founding members of the Swadhin Bangla Football Dal that played matches across India in 1971 to increase public support and raise funds for Bangladesh鈥檚 War of Independence.
The BFF and several other sports organisations expressed profound shock at his death and consoled his bereaved family.