Bangladesh, home to 170 million people, did not qualify for the 2026 World Cup. The South Asian country is nonetheless home to some of the most fervent supporters of footballing giants Brazil and Argentina anywhere in the world.
Football fans have been rushing since May to out-do each other with giant flags of the two rivals, one of the rare occasions when the fiercely patriotic nation embraces foreign colours.
Outside residential areas, towering cut-outs of Lionel Messi have appeared, and fans have flocked to sports markets in Dhaka’s upmarket Gulshan neighbourhood to buy replica Argentina and Brazil jerseys priced at around Tk500 (£3).
Thousands of football fans gathered at the Super Market Chottor in Munshiganj in the capital Dhaka on Wednesday to watch the FIFA World Cup 2026 semi-final on giant screens. As Argentina beat England 2-1 in Atlanta to reach the 19 July final, fans wearing Argentina jerseys were seen cheering and clapping in viral social media videos.
The title match will be played at the New York New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford after Spain advanced with a 2-0 win over France.
Bangladesh’s love for football was acknowledged by Fifa and Argentine players in 2022, who were overwhelmed by the backing they received from a nation almost 17,000km away from home. And at the centre of the love for Argentina is Diego Maradona.
The country’s affection for the Latin American nation, despite neither having any particular geographical or political ties to Bangladesh, has been generational and, at times, turned friends into rivals during the weeks the World Cup is played.
Millions of people across Bangladesh have thrown their support behind Argentina and Brazil since the start of this year’s World Cup, in a display of football fandom that transcends national borders.
The passion for football has also led to violence.
A man killed following a spat over Lionel Messi’s missed penalty shot was among at least 12 people dead during the World Cup-related violence.
Md Shariful Islam, 38, was killed after a altercation between football supporters in Cumilla turned violent during last week’s Argentina-Egypt match when Egyptian goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir saved Messi’s penalty.
The rickshaw driver was watching the match along with the locals at a tea stall when he was assaulted by “Argentina supporters” for mocking the Argentine great’s missed penalty, according to local reports.
Fayaz Tajrian died on 8 July in a motorcycle crash in Chattogram while travelling to watch the Argentina-Egypt match.
A football-related dispute turned deadly in Narail, where Mostafa Kazi was hacked to death.
In separate incidents, Mahidul Islam was killed when a goalpost collapsed during celebrations in Chattogram, while Khokon Karmakar collapsed and died before a friendly match organised by supporters in Barguna.
Earlier this month, dozens of people suffered injuries in clashes between supporters of Brazil and Argentina following a local football match in Habiganj. Young men in the Shariatpur area have declared they will not get married until Brazil ends its wait for the trophy it last won in 2002.
And though Brazil and Argentina are by far the dominant forces, other World Cup nations do occasionally pique people’s interest. Amjad Hossian, 72, made headlines by displaying a 7.5 km-long German flag that he had made after selling a small portion of his land for funds. His dream, the daily Prothom Alo newspaper reported, was that the massive flag would find a place in a museum in Germany.
Norway, which made history by advancing to the quarter-finals for the first time ever, actively made efforts to tap into Bangladesh’s football fever, asking fans to support the Vikings during their games.
In its appeal to fans, the Norwegian embassy highlighted the countries’ deep-rooted relationship, noting that Norway was among the earliest nations to recognise Bangladesh after it gained independence. “So, what do you say, Bangladesh?” the embassy asked in a social media post.
“Time to back the underdogs! Time to dream big together,” it added.
This World Cup was the first to feature 48 teams, expanding the tournament to a record 104 matches, which will be held until 19 July in the US, Mexico, and Canada.
The game of football was introduced to undivided India’s then-capital, Calcutta, by its British colonisers in the 19th century. In the 60s and 70s, when Bangladesh, then known as East Pakistan, was undergoing domestic political turmoil, the distraught youth were searching for hope and heroes.
At that time young people found that inspiration in Brazil, the dominant team of their generation. Pele became a national favourite, inspiring generations of footballers in Bangladesh.
The game then gained widespread popularity in the cricket-loving nation in the mid-1980s as television ownership expanded. For many Bangladeshis, the 1986 World Cup was their first glimpse of the tournament in colour. That World Cup, Maradona’s iconic goals against England transcended football, resonating as a symbolic victory over a former colonial power.
For young fans, Argentine star Lionel Messi has fulfilled the void left by Maradona, while Brazil supporters have taken a favourite in Neymar.
The fervour and rivalry has turned violent before – and has even proved fatal. A study found that 23 people died in 2022 during the last World Cup due to clashes between rival fan groups.
In 2014, at least three died while hanging flags from electric wiring, Time reported. In 2018, a 12-year-old boy was electrocuted while putting up a Brazil flag, while a man and his son were critically injured in clashes between rival fan processions.
