The 20th Asian Games, set to take place in Aichi–Nagoya, Japan, in September next year, will feature football with a revised format. Unlike previous editions, the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) has limited participation to 16 teams each in men’s and women’s football, increasing competition for qualification.
Men’s football at the Asian Games will be played primarily by Under-23 teams, with the option to include three senior players. However, Bangladesh failed to qualify for the AFC U-23 Championship main round, scheduled in Saudi Arabia from January 6–24, which serves as the gateway to the Games.
As a result, Bangladesh will not compete in men’s football at the Asian Games, ending their participation in the event after several decades.
“𝑶𝒏𝒍𝒚 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒎𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑨𝑭𝑪 𝑼-23 𝒎𝒂𝒊𝒏 𝒑𝒉𝒂𝒔𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒊𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑨𝒔𝒊𝒂𝒏 𝑮𝒂𝒎𝒆𝒔,” 𝒂 𝒇𝒆𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒔𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒄𝒆 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒅.
Rituparna Eligible as Women’s Team Secures Asian Games Spot
While the men’s side misses out, Bangladesh’s women’s senior team remains eligible for the Asian Games. All 12 teams that featured in the Women’s Asian Cup in Australia, along with the top four Asian-ranked teams, have earned places in the tournament.
This means Rituparna-Afidara will represent Bangladesh, while Hamza Chowdhury and other senior men’s players will not feature in the Games.
Australia’s unique status — competing in Asian football but representing Oceania at the Olympics — opens up additional slots for higher-ranked Asian teams in both men’s and women’s competitions.
“𝑺𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒏𝒐 𝑺𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒉 𝑨𝒔𝒊𝒂𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒏’𝒔 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒎𝒔 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑨𝒔𝒊𝒂𝒏 𝑮𝒂𝒎𝒆𝒔, 𝒘𝒆 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝑨𝑭𝑭 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒎𝒑𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒑 𝒅𝒖𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝑭𝑰𝑭𝑨 𝒘𝒊𝒏𝒅𝒐𝒘,” 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅 𝑺𝑨𝑭𝑭 𝑮𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒍 𝑺𝒆𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒚 𝑷𝒖𝒓𝒖𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒕𝒕𝒐𝒎 𝑪𝒂𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒍.
SAFF Championship Likely During FIFA Window
The FIFA international window from September 21 to October 6, 2026, had initially raised hopes for Bangladesh to field senior players like Hamza Chowdhury and Samit Som in the Asian Games. With that opportunity gone, focus has shifted to the SAFF Championship, which is now expected to be held during the same period.
India could potentially replace Australia in the AFC U-23 tournament, having finished among the top teams in qualification. This would allow India to field squads in both competitions simultaneously.
Although the SAFF Championship dates are confirmed, the venue is yet to be finalized. Bangladesh is a strong contender to host, having last staged the tournament in 2018.
“𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒖𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒅𝒆𝒑𝒆𝒏𝒅 𝒐𝒏 𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒆𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒍𝒐𝒈𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒍 𝒇𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒔. 𝑴𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒅𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒂 𝒅𝒆𝒄𝒊𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏,” 𝒂 𝑺𝑨𝑭𝑭 𝒐𝒇𝒇𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅.
