Bangladesh’s women’s national football team have completed their final preparation match in China ahead of the 2026 Asian Games, facing Guangdong Women’s FC in a second closed-door friendly at the Guangdong Football Base on Thursday.
The match marked the end of Bangladesh’s China camp, which was arranged as the final phase of preparations for the women’s football competition at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games. Bangladesh had been scheduled to face Guangdong twice in China, on 7 and 10 September.
Guangdong Women’s FC, currently seventh in China’s top-flight women’s league, provided Bangladesh with a strong test before the team’s move to Japan. The club compete regularly against some of the country’s leading sides, making the two matches an important part of Bangladesh’s preparations.
The Bangladesh squad arrived in China on 1 September and stepped up their preparations with intensive training sessions before the friendlies. Head coach Peter James Butler had previously described the opportunity to face a strong Chinese side as valuable preparation for his players, particularly against opponents with different physical and tactical qualities.
With the China camp now complete, Bangladesh will leave for Japan on Friday, 11 September. The team are expected to reach Nagoya at around 9pm before travelling by bus to Osaka, where they will be based during the Asian Games women’s football competition.
The competition begins on 14 September, five days before the official opening of the Asian Games. Bangladesh have been drawn in Group B alongside three formidable opponents — North Korea, South Korea and Myanmar. The top two teams from each group, along with the two best third-placed sides, will advance to the quarter-finals.
Bangladesh will begin their campaign against North Korea on 14 September before facing South Korea and Myanmar. For Butler’s side, the focus now shifts from preparation to competition.
