The National Jersey Never Comes in Two Versions

There are moments when an entire nation breathes as one, and sport has an unparalleled ability to create them. Victories have an amazing way of reminding us of who we are, whether it is via the calm pride of watching the red and green rise on an international stage or the shout that follows a crucial score. There are no barriers of gender, occupation or politics in those moments, there is only Bangladesh. That, perhaps, is the source of its power. Sport is a language we all understand. However, beneath each glorious victory is another tale, one which never makes it to the scoreboard. It is the tale of the opportunities given to athletes before the first whistle is ever sounded, the structures through which athletes’ journey unfolds, and the laws by which equal opportunities for talent will be ensured. That is when sport stops being about games and starts being about justice.

The success of Bangladesh’s women’s football team at the SAFF Championship was not just a sports achievement but a reminder of how much our Bangladeshi sports players can do once they are determined enough to win despite all the obstacles in front of them. The entire country celebrated this success with pride, and rightly so. However, national pride does not end here. What we need to reflect upon is why many of our women players have to surpass their obstacles before beating their opponents.

In any case, the question is not whether the inequality exists, but whether the legal system can afford to ignore it

 It is widely accepted that sport is the purest form of meritocracy. The scoreboard recognizes scores, not genders. The stopwatch marks off time, not identities. The flag waves in celebration of performance, not the gender of the athlete under it. The path to that podium paints quite a different picture. Not all equal talents have equal opportunities. Equality is not an empty slogan, it is a Constitutional promise. The Bangladesh Constitution does not regard equality merely as an ideal that may be realized only when it suits our purposes. Article 27 provides for equality before the law and equal protection of the law, and Article 28 bars discrimination on the basis of gender and proclaims the equal status of women in every aspect of public activity. Such provisions are not merely for application in courts of law or constitutional argument, they represent the principles by which all institutions of government must be guided.

Indeed, if there is any meaning behind the principle of constitutional equality, then it should be manifested not only in the rights which athletes have on paper, but in the opportunities which they get in reality.

But this is exactly what makes this discussion rather awkward

For far too long now the successes of the women athletes in Bangladesh were being viewed in the context of exceptional stories about resilience. Of course, these are admirable stories, yet they speak about an inherent problem of the system. It is unjust that success of an athlete depends on the ability to struggle with inequality when it comes to facilities, funding, protection mechanisms, or participation in sports administration.

The prevalent idea that sports law is all about contracts, discipline, or disagreements over tournament rules is a false one. Sports law is in fact concerned with issues of governance. It seeks to know if the governing bodies of sports are open, accountable, inclusive, and able to safeguard the integrity of all athletes. The issue of selection processes, allocation of funds, policies to stop harassment, policies for safeguarding, grievance redressal system, and equal access to training grounds are all legal questions, not merely management issues. Not only does the requirement pertain to internal legislation but also to international obligations. By being a member of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), Bangladesh has pledged to eliminate discrimination against women in all fields of public life. Similarly, the International Charter of Physical Education, Physical Activity and Sport of UNESCO identifies the engagement in sports as an inherent right of all people irrespective of discrimination. This obliges not just a token consideration of women sportspeople but a creation of the situation for their equality.

The law does not stop at the stadium gate

Beyond the limits of the stadium, the importance of these legal principles cannot be understated. The sports arena is one of the best places to see a nation’s values, thus it’s critical that the principles outlined in the constitution be both expressed and demonstrated. It is for this reason that the test of equality should not only be about the legal guarantees, but also about the willingness of the institutions to demonstrate them in their actual application. This is something that can be done by creating an environment in the sporting world that is transparent, accountable, and ensures equal opportunities, in which the development of talent is fostered through access to resources, protection systems, and meritocracy.

The real measure of a nation’s sporting success

Therefore, a nation’s success in sports depends on more than just how many medals it takes home. It is about making sure that all players, male or female, have an equal opportunity from the beginning. As Bangladesh prepares to ensure its future success in sports, it needs to move beyond the focus on victories and begin to construct the necessary legal and institutional foundation that will allow to keep achieving victories in the future. Equality of opportunities is not something that should be seen as privilege but as the fulfillment of a constitutionally required promise of equality. The national jersey is much more than just another jersey. It is the embodiment of the collective identity and aspirations of the country, with one flag, one anthem, and one goal. Thus, the legal and institutional background of the national jersey should be consistent with that idea of unity by providing equality of opportunity, equality of protection and equality of dignity for everyone who wears it. In the end, there are no two versions of the national jersey.

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