Author: Nuha Khan
1986 saw the year that Argentinian football legend, Diego Maradona, captured the love of Bangladesh. The 1986 World Cup held in Mexico was the first to be televised in color in Bangladesh, drawing the excitement of the entire country. From his ‘Hand of God’ goal to dribbling past five England players over half the field before scoring, Maradona was undoubtedly the most iconic spectacle of the 1986 tournament. As thousands of Bengalis witnessed the player’s magician-like play on their colored T.V. screens, they morphed into die-hard fans that would go on to adopt a life of supporting the Argentinian national team.
Nearly four decades later, Bangladesh’s love for soccer and unrelenting passion for Argentinian talent has only grown stronger. Hundreds of videos capturing Bengali fans around the world rooting for Argentina flooded the internet during the 2022 Qatar World Cup. The clips showed thousands of Bengalis dressed in blue and white stripes, waving Argentina flags, and even singing in Spanish across cities in Bangladesh and stadiums in Qatar. The viral nature of these social media posts caught the attention of the Argentine Football Association, which released a video thanking Bengalis for their extraordinary support.
But the recognition did not stop at sports. In February 2023, The Bengali people’s unwavering, dedicated, intense support for the Argentinians prompted the South-American country to open its embassy in Dhaka, Bangladesh for the first time in 45 years. Santiago Andrés Cafiero, Argentina’s Foreign Minister at the time, traveled to Dhaka to inaugurate the reopening of the embassy at which he stated,
“We are happy to reopen the embassy in Bangladesh. The emotions for football reunited both countries. For this, I thank the people of Bangladesh” .
Cafiero went on to express the exciting future of strengthened bilateral relations between the two states. The revival of the embassy lays the foundation for straightened diplomatic and economic ties as Cafiero stated, “Our bilateral relations will be stronger. Both countries will work together to overcome global economic challenges. We will work together also for the development of football in Bangladesh”. In terms of trade, both countries hold valuable goods to regional markets. For example, Bangladesh is the world’s third largest importer of soybean oil while Argentina is its largest exporter. The strengthened relations will help Bangladesh, being the world’s third largest textile producer, expand its markets in Argentina and the wider South America region.
As most recently illustrated by Argentina and Bangladesh, football and its fans have the formidable strength to facilitate, foster, and further international relations.
Image Credit: “Inauguration of Argentina Embassy in Dhaka by Md. Shahriar Alam and Santiago Cafiero (27 February 2023)” by the Press Information Department (Bangladesh), via Wikimedia Commons , in the public domain
Goal Diplomacy 