The Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) Disciplinary Committee has fined Dhaka Rangers Club for fielding an overage player in the Championship League. The club has been fined Tk30,000.
BFF has also awarded a 3–0 win to Chittagong City Football Club in their match against Rangers. The decision was taken in a meeting held on Saturday.
Bangladesh’s second-tier football competition, the Championship League, has already faced controversy over match-fixing and spot-fixing. Now, a new issue has emerged in the form of age fraud.
To help young players grow in a competitive setting, the Championship League requires clubs to register three players aged between 17 and 19. At least one of them must be included in the starting eleven.
In the match against Chittagong City Football Club, Rangers fielded a player who was above the allowed age limit. After the match, the opposing club filed an appeal with the federation. The federation reviewed the matter and found it to be true. It then referred the case to the Disciplinary Committee, which made its decision based on league bylaws and the disciplinary code.
According to league rules, one player born between May 31, 2007 and December 1, 2009 must be included in the starting eleven. Rangers fielded a player under this category in their April 9 match, but his actual age was higher. This violated the rules, leading to punishment for the club.
The federation acted after the complaint from the opposing club. Rangers had registered the player before the match. At that time, both the player and the club managed to bypass the federation’s checks. This incident also shows weaknesses in BFF’s registration process, where such gaps can be exploited.
