Why Bangladesh is an Argentina fan: a story with Maradona as the protagonist

After the failed debut against Saudi Arabia, the Argentine national team wins a real final against Mexico and takes second place in group C of the World Cup in Qatar. With goals from Lionel Messi and Enzo Fernández, the Albiceleste were back on track and the celebrations for both goals went around the world. But what has gained in repercussion and attracted more attention are those of a quite particular Fan Fest: bangladesh.

At first glance, more than one could confuse the images with any city in Argentina. But the videos that are circulating on social networks are from that Asian country. Since the 2021 Copa América, the celebrations for each of Messi’s milestones have begun to transcend, even if the fanaticism has more to do with this moment of the Argentina national team.

Indeed, the Argentine archaeologist Rocio Goncalves -who shares a Tik Tok profile called Cultura Soportabl with the Dominican historian Blanca Mejia Nina– traced the origin of this fanaticism and came across a historical episode that took place in 1942when the famous “Battle of Singapore” took place.

hand in hand Winston Churchillthe United Kingdom he cut off supplies to the people of Bangladesh – then the eastern part of Pakistan – in the belief that the Bengalis might eventually cooperate with Japan in their dispute. That blockade caused the “Bengal famine” of 1943.

Since then, the resentment of the people of Bangladesh against the British has only grown. 46 years after that conflict, Bangladesh would get a nod: It was at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, at the hands of a certain Diego Armando Maradona. In the midst of a more than charged context, the albiceleste star took the Selection on his shoulders and was eliminated England with two goals that would go down in history, in the quarter-finals: the best goal ever scored and the iconic ‘Hand of God’.

The Bangladesh team never had a chance to qualify for a World Cup, but that afternoon the Bangladeshis found an idol in Maradona and a second home in Argentina. Since then, the Asians have turned to the Argentine national team at every possible opportunity, and Lionel Messi’s breakthrough into the sport has only increased the Bengals’ fanaticism for the Albiceleste.

For the Bangladeshis, the fact that this World Cup was held in Qatar was almost a blessing. Thousands of Indians and Bangladeshis flocked to Doha, and some even said they were at the Lusail Stadium to watch Lionel Scaloni’s side’s first two games. In the streets, Bengalis are the majority and almost everyone cheers on the Argentine national team. ​

The wild celebration of the victory against Mexico

Almost 50 million people vibrated with goals from Lionel Messi and Enzo Fernández. Hardly a smaller portion, when compared to the 166 million people who live in Bangladesh, the other home of La Escaloneta. Curiosity is already a reality: the Asian country vibrates with blues and whites as if it were another province. And with the great triumph against El Tri it was felt again.

Giant screens, crowded squares and even a local television presenter who presented the summary of the match in the Argentine’s jacket. On the eve of the match, when the news of a Bengali channel took to the streets to speak to the fans, the presenter wore the same purple shirt that the national team will wear next Wednesday against Poland, in a match which it will paralyze the two nations.

At Daffodil University – a private institution located in Dhaka, which welcomes 21,000 students – the authorities have installed a giant screen to follow everything that happened between the albiceleste and Mexico. With Enzo Fernández’s goal, which closed the match, the fans went up to the stage and they jumped so hard they ended up disconnecting the image.

It wasn’t even close to the single point of celebration. Is that videos of other celebrations across the country have gone viral on social networks. With almost nine hours more than in Buenos Aires, the closing match against Martino’s team found them around 1 in the morning. They had no problems: they started with flags and street celebrations, which lasted until after 3, according to that country’s tweeters.

In view of the crossing with Mexico, the Bengalis had already shown their support by hanging flags on the terraces of buildings in several cities. During the match against Arabia, the long faces of the fans injured by the unexpected backlash could be seen.

That’s why Bangladesh became a trend on Twitter and was filled with messages from Argentines thanking the national team for their love. “It’s 3am in Bangladesh and they’re out partying in the street, I really love them,” wrote one user on Twitter. Others have asked the team to organize a friendly there as soon as possible as a sign of gratitude.