SAFF begins under cloud of controversy

Thousands of seats could remain empty when the 15th SAFF Championship kicks off in Dhaka on Thursday, with high ticket prices and poor publicity taking the shine off South Asia's biggest football tournament. Just hours before the opening match, several sections of the National Stadium were still showing tickets available, forcing organisers to announce a last-minute 50 per cent discount for students in a bid to boost sales.

Defending champions India will face Pakistan at 3:30pm before hosts Bangladesh take on Bhutan at 8:00pm. But despite the return of the regional showpiece to Dhaka after eight years, the capital has shown little sign of a football festival, with inadequate promotion, expensive tickets and a lack of public interest overshadowing the build-up.

The slow sales were evident on the official ticketing website, where several sections remained available as of noon on Thursday. While the East Zone gallery was sold out, parts of the North-East and South zones had also seen strong sales. However, thousands of tickets were still available just hours before the tournament began.

The situation had already prompted a last-minute response. On Wednesday, Tickify announced through its official Facebook page a 50 per cent discount on tickets for students. The offer, however, was limited to just 100 tickets, a small concession considering the number of unsold seats.

The ticket controversy began when organisers announced that a single ticket, branded as a 'Match Day Pass', would allow spectators to watch both matches on a given day. The minimum price was set at Tk1,000, drawing criticism from football fans who felt the cost was too high for ordinary supporters.

Mahmudul Islam, a student of Dhaka Ideal College, has watched almost every Bangladesh match at the National Stadium over the past year. But the new prices have left him unsure whether he can afford to attend the SAFF Championship.

"I am a student. I need Tk1,000 to watch a match from the gallery, and I simply do not have that much money. If I ask my family for money to watch football, they will tell me to watch it on television instead. Even if I somehow manage to arrange the money for one match, I will not be able to watch the others. I am still trying to decide which match I should go for, so I have not bought a ticket yet," Mahmudul told Daily Sun.

Poor publicity has compounded the problem. Major roads across the capital have shown few signs of the tournament, with banners and billboards largely absent. Even around the National Stadium, there has been little to suggest that a major regional competition involving six national teams is about to begin.

The situation was particularly telling on Wednesday, when workers hurriedly installed bamboo barriers at the gallery entrances. Passers-by stopped to watch, with some asking what was happening at the stadium and which teams would be playing. It was a striking indication of how little the tournament had reached the general public, even in the immediate surroundings of the venue.

The contrast with previous editions is difficult to ignore. Bangladesh-India and India-Pakistan matches once generated excitement well before kick-off, dominating newspaper coverage, television discussions and conversations among football fans. This time, that familiar atmosphere has been largely missing.

The lack of enthusiasm is particularly disappointing after Hamza Choudhury's arrival revived interest in Bangladesh football. Last November, general gallery tickets for the Asian Cup qualifying match against India, priced at Tk500, sold out online within just six minutes. A year later, organisers have struggled to turn that excitement into demand for the regional championship.

On the pitch, Bangladesh will be chasing their first SAFF title since their historic home triumph in 2003. Thomas Dooley's 28-man squad includes ten expatriate players, with Hamza, Shamit Shome, Farhan Ali Wahid, Jamal Bhuiyan and Tariq Kazi among the notable names. But recent defeats at the FIFA ASEAN Cup, including a 9-2 loss to Indonesia, have raised concerns over the team's form.

Bangladesh will face Bhutan and Sri Lanka in Group A, with a winning start crucial to their hopes. Hamza will miss Thursday's opener, while the absence of an established number nine remains another concern for Dooley.

The tournament may yet deliver exciting football, but the organisers have already faced an uncomfortable test. With thousands of tickets still available and little festive atmosphere around the capital, the challenge is now to bring supporters back to the stands. For a championship built on regional rivalry and football passion, empty seats are not the welcome Dhaka would have wanted.