Opinion · World Cup 2026
More than sixteen thousand kilometres from the pitch, millions of Bangladeshis live and breathe the Seleção. Here is why a distant nation has loved Brazil since Pelé’s first World Cup, and dreamed along with its 2026 run.
Brazil supporters follow a World Cup match; more than sixteen thousand kilometres away, millions in Bangladesh cheer the Seleção as their own. (Photo internet reproduction)
For many years I have learned that football can unite people who have never shared a language, a border or a history. I am from Bangladesh, a country in South Asia more than sixteen thousand kilometres from Brazil. And yet, when the Seleção takes the field, millions of Bengali hearts beat to the same rhythm as Brazil’s.
That is exactly what happened when Brazil beat Japan to reach the last 16 of the 2026 World Cup.
