The State of Female Football
One of the big questions that comes to mind when talking to footballers who religiously play the game is; how long have they been at it? From a matter of kicking around the ball to playing full fledged football takes a lot of discipline and rigorous criticism of one’s game. Now, the longevity in a female’s play time may not seem very significant at first, however, it portrays an image of how far our country has come as of late.
We asked a few footballers in Dhaka about their experience of playing football as a female and thanks to them, we were able to get an insight into how difficult it can be for a female rising up the ranks in the city. We posed the question, “What are some of the obstacles you have faced as a girl playing a ‘man’s sport’ in Bangladesh?”, and the answers were to a degree the same, and what you’d expect.
Sabrina Hossain had a very apt and concise way to sum up the regular situation: “Safety and availability of place to play everyday”.
A sad matter of the fact is that it doesn’t stop there; as others mentioned a lack of support and some being harassed by men while trying to enjoy the sport. Fortunately for some people like Matsushima Sumaya, a lack of support never seemed to be a bother, and she could maintain a regular routine of playing football, and also Samaha Hamid who not only had the support of her family, but basked in the freedom that all women deserve, by being comfortable when playing with the kids of her neighbourhood. The prejudice fueled barriers set by our society needs to be broken down with initiative from the youth and the elderly, but we can also appreciate all the women that have managed to circumvent past these seemingly insurmountable odds.
While the general consensus was to ‘ignore the haters’, there can be cons to doing this. You don’t want your love of the sport to come clashing with your well being, and coming off of that, we’ve found two solutions to this matter. Plaantik’s very own Nusaiba Naseeree quite literally ‘played the field’ and took advantage of a field in her neighbourhood. Jarin Tasnim Ratri also pointed out a quaint solution, of communicating her problems with organizers or opponents. Both of these provide a safe and logical solution towards a very prevalent issue.
“The conditions are much better now. But I believe a proper underground women’s association is necessary to make things better”, Nusaiba mentioned. And juggling all the issues at hand, a proper association, governed by fair play, is what’s needed to properly tackle them.
The encouragement for inclusion in sports, especially football, shouldn’t be a surprise though. With how well the women’s national football team is doing these days, there couldn’t be better news than the young generation being increasingly involved with the sport. That brings us to our next question of whether or not it rejuvenates and excites the players of today to play more. While the general consensus remains a resounding ‘yes’, some haven’t had their playing routines or demeanor affected by these results as they’ve always been steadfast in their own goals of perfecting their skills.
Jarin Tasnim Ratri feels the national team’s improvement has a part to play, “I think they’re taking major steps forward. I hope they continue to do so till the point where Bangladesh women playing in the World Cup is no longer seen as a big deal.” But to keep the interest of the younger female population going, a lot more needs to be done.
“Younger women will be more interested to play and follow football if there are incentives even if they don't play it professionally. Such as, having fairer tournaments where FIFA rules are followed, having prize money, having individual awards that are truly based on performance. Moreover, they must be playing for the right reasons and if they're passionate enough, following the game will occur naturally.” said Nusaiba.
Sabrina added “I think getting them to try it out and encouraging them even if they fail would be a great start, especially for their confidence. A lot of girls here lack confidence and if they see this as a way of earning that, I think more and more girls would welcome this sport.”
This also includes a very significant bit of information; that women should be introduced to the sport at an early age and be given positive reinforcement. While both of these players had very insightful opinions, the others also provided valuable ideas such as creating social groups where everyone can familiarize with each other, creating a safe space and increasing a level of comfort for the young players.
We initiated this interview with the hopes of delving into the psyche of a few football players of the underground community, and safe to say that things are looking reasonably good. And while there’s a lot of work to be done in this space, there’s plenty of stories around to tell us that it’s time for female footballers to rise.
