Diego Maradona: The way he inspired the Bangladesh fans

Watching World Cup football was a great opportunity for low and middle income people to buy televisions in Bangladesh in the 1980s and 1990s.

And Diego Maradona was the biggest star for the people of Bangladesh in the World Cup from 198 to 1994.

Mehdi Ansari, a resident of Dhaka at the time, was a school student. But the experience of watching Maradona’s game live on television remains clear in memory.

Mr. Ansari said: “It was unimaginable to see the game live from the satellite at that time. During the final we watched it with the people around us. There was no comparison between Maradona’s performance and the tension at that time.”

“Maradona is a brand for us, an impeccable character. Wherever he went, he was at the center of the discussion.”

According to him, Bangladesh’s love of soccer and Argentina’s large fan base was formed by seeing the extraordinary talent of this rare talent.

Although the Brazil-Argentina duo is very old in the world of football, this magical footballer sowed the seeds of admiration and football illusion with the Argentina-Brazil team in the alleys and neighborhoods of Bangladesh around the World Cup.

The 1986 World Cup in Mexico was broadcast live on Bangladesh television. Argentina won the World Cup with the outstanding ability of Seba Maradona.

And countless fans are made in Bangladesh, thousands of miles from their own country.

The former captain of the Bangladesh women’s soccer team, Dalia Akhter, also had the opportunity to watch Maradona’s matches live on television.

Like many other professional footballers in Bangladesh, Dahlia Akhter was inspired to build a soccer career by seeing the great performance of her favorite player.

“My love for soccer was awakened by watching Maradona play as a child. He is my idol. Maradona could have won a difficult match on his own. His style of play has inspired many footballers like me,” he said.

According to him, this short player shook the football world by cutting through multiple opponents with great skill and wrapping the ball in the net.

His speed and skill on the ball have repeatedly captivated Bangladeshi footballers and fans.

Dahlia Akhtar’s deep love for soccer comes from Maradona.

“A lot of players dribbled well but couldn’t score at the end. But Maradona was good at everything from dribbling to scoring goals. Not all players have it. That’s why he was so unique to Bangladeshis.”

Senior sports journalist Dilu Khandaker had the opportunity to see Maradona play the field at the 1994 World Cup in the United States, to speak to him directly.

He had to leave the field in the middle of the World Cup that year due to doping. At that time, millions of Bangladeshi fans were crying.

There were protests in Bangladesh against FIFA’s decision. The case was presented in the Bangladeshi court.

The news of this Bangladeshi football frenzy found a place in the world media.

Mr. Khandaker said that although there were more Brazilian supporters in Bangladesh before the 1980s, the picture changed after Maradona took the field.

Maradona has awakened the love of football not only in the minds of the people of Bangladesh but also in Argentina.

“The love of football among the people of Bangladesh, the love of Argentina is for Maradona. He has played such wonderful football that he has attracted people like magic.”

According to him, although Argentina has not seen any success in the international arena for a long time, the madness surrounding Maradona continues to flow from generation to generation.

For fans around the world, Maradona was nicknamed the god of soccer. Countless Bangladeshi people of all ages and classes are mourning the departure of this great hero.