Kabir Ahmed (; 2 February 1935 – 3 January 2019) was a Bangladeshi

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player and coach. He was one of the few

East Pakistani East Pakistan was the eastern province of Pakistan between 1955 and 1971, restructured and renamed from the province of East Bengal and covering the territory of the modern country of Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India and Burma, wit ...

players to have represented the Pakistan national team. He was part of the legendary East Pakistani attacking trio of Kabir, Mari Chowdhury and

Ashraf Chowdhury Ashraf Chowdhury (; 1935 – 28 December 1998) was a former Bangladeshi football player and coach. Early career Ashraf was born in Daudkandi Upazila of Comilla District, British India. On 14 August 1947, he played for Lalmonirhat High School du ...

Club career

Kabir began his career with Town Club in the Barishal First Division in 1951. At 17, he joined Bengal Government Press and won the First Division League of Dhaka. In 1953, he played for Governors XI against

Kolkata Mohammedan Mohammedan Sporting Club (), commonly referred to as Mohammedan, is an Indian multi-sports club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. The club is best known for their professional men's football section which competes in the Indian Super League, the t ...

, during an exhibition match in Dhaka. In 1955, Kabir joined Dhaka Wanderers and won the league. The following year, he and several teammates joined

Dhaka Mohammedan Mohammedan Sporting Club Limited is a Bangladeshi professional football club based in Dhaka. Founded in 1936, it is one of the oldest and the most successful football club in the country, with a support base in all parts of the country. Th ...

after a dispute with Wanderers authorities. At Mohammedan, Kabir won the league five times and the

Aga Khan Gold Cup The Aga Khan Gold Cup was a tournament played in Dhaka, Bangladesh which invited the club sides from leading football nations of Asia to compete. Many renowned football pundits regard this competition as a predecessor of the AFC Champions League ...

once. In 1958, led by Kabir, Mari Chowdhury, and

, Mohammedan reached the quarter-finals of India's

IFA Shield The IFA Shield is a football competition organized by the Indian Football Association, the football governing body in the Indian state of West Bengal. The IFA came into existence in 1893, and was named after the association. The IFA Shield to ...

. In 1959, he played for Police AC with national teammates

Nabi Chowdhury Nurunnabi Chowdhury (; 1934 – January 2003), better known as Nabi Chowdhury, was a former Bangladeshi football player and the first East Pakistani or Bengali to captain the Pakistan national football team. Early life Nabi Chowdhury was born in ...

and

Zahirul Haque Zahirul Haque (; 5 January 1935 – 6 January 2024), simply known as Zahir, was a Bangladeshi association football, footballer who played as a right-back. Early life Born in Nabinagar Upazila of Brahmanbaria District on 5 January 1935, Zahir co ...

. He retired in 1967 due to a serious knee injury.

International career

Pakistan national football team group picture

Kabir represented

East Pakistan East Pakistan was the eastern province of Pakistan between 1955 and 1971, restructured and renamed from the province of East Bengal and covering the territory of the modern country of Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India and Burma, wit ...

at the National Football Championship between 1955 and 1959. He captained the team in 1959 when they finished runners-up. He was among the six

footballers in the Pakistan national team at the

1958 Asian Games The 1958 Asian Games, officially the Third Asian Games () and commonly known as Tokyo 1958 (), were a multi-sport event held in Tokyo, Japan, from 24 May to 1 June 1958. It was governed by the Asian Games Federation. A total of 1,820 athletes repr ...

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

, Japan and was also appointed as vice-captain. Before the tournament he played practice matches in Singapore and Malaysia. In 1959, he toured Burma and later that year also participated in the 1960 AFC Asian Cup qualifiers, in

Kochi Kochi ( , ), List of renamed Indian cities and states#Kerala, formerly known as Cochin ( ), is a major port city along the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea. It is part of the Ernakulam district, district of Ernakulam in the ...

, India where he was appointed as vice-captain behind

Qayyum Changezi Abdul Qayyum Ali Khan Changezi (Urdu: ; 25 December 1935 – 25 June 2005), commonly known as Qayyum Changezi, was a Pakistani Football player, footballer. A versatile player, Changezi played in multiple positions, including Forward (association ...

. His last international tour came the following year, under a fellow East Pakistani, head coach

Sheikh Shaheb Ali Sheikh Shaheb Ali (; 1 July 1915 – 1 June 2004) was a Bangladeshi association football, football player and coach. He is the only East Pakistani to have both played for and coached the Pakistan national football team. He was the first head coac ...

, as Pakistan finished in fourth place in the

Merdeka Cup Merdeka Tournament () is an international friendly Soccer, football tournament held in Malaysia to commemorate the Independence Day (Malaysia), Independence Day. It is mainly played at Stadium Merdeka, Independence Stadium, in Kuala Lumpur. "Me ...

. Kabir captained

Khulna Division Khulna Division () is the second largest of the eight divisions of Bangladesh. It has an area of and a population of 17,416,645 at the 2022 Bangladesh census (preliminary returns). Its headquarters and largest city is Khulna city in Khulna Dist ...

in the National Championship from 1960 to 1963.

Post–playing career

In 1966, Kabir joined the East Pakistan Sports Federation. Kabir alongside coaches

and Rashid Chunna were in-charge of recruiting players and coaches for the East Pakistan football team from different

districts A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

. In 1972, he was appointed as the first ever head coach of

Abahani Krira Chakra Abahani Limited Dhaka (), also referred as Dhaka Abahani or Abahani Limited, is a Bangladeshi professional football club based in the Dhanmondi area of Dhaka, Bangladesh. The club currently competes in the Bangladesh Premier League, the top ...

. In 1979, he joined the ad hoc committee of the

Bangladesh Football Federation Bangladesh Football Federation (, ''Bānglādesh fūṭbôl fēḍārēshôn'') is the governing body that administers the sport of association football in Bangladesh. It is in charge of running the country's men's and women's national teams, ...

(BFF) and in the same year he was appointed general manager of the national team under head coach Anwar Hossain during the 1980 AFC Asian Cup qualifiers. He also served as an assistant to

Amir Jang Ghaznavi Amir Jang Ghaznavi (; 1933 June 17 – 22 August 1995) was a former Bangladeshi footballer and sports organizer. Early life Amir Jang Ghaznavi was born on 17 June 1933, in Daulatkhan Thana of Bhola District, Bengal. Club career Early career Gha ...

as a team organizer and scout for

following his retirement. In 2001, he received the National Sports Awards, for his contribution to the country's football. 1963 East Pakistan football team

Death

Kabir died on 3 January 2019, at the age of 83. Following a

Stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

in 2001, he had been paralyzed for 17 years prior to his death. He was buried in the Azimpur graveyard, in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Career statistics

International

:''Scores and results list Pakistan's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Kabir goal.''

Honours

BG Press SRC * Dhaka First Division League: 1952 Dhaka Wanderers * Dhaka First Division League: 1955 *Pakistan Day Football Tournament: 1955 Mohammedan SC * Dhaka First Division League: 1957, 1961, 1963, 1965, 1966 *

: 1964 *Independence Day Cup: 1958, 1960, 1961, 1963, 1966 *All Pakistan Mohammad Ali Bogra Shield: 1966 East Pakistan White * National Football Championship runner-up: 1957 East Pakistan * National Football Championship runner-up: 1959

Awards and accolades

*2001 − National Sports Awards *2009 − Grameenphone - Prothom Alo Sports Lifetime award of the Year

References

Bibliography

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ahmed, Kabir 1935 births 2019 deaths Bangladeshi men's footballers Men's association football wingers Pakistani men's footballers Pakistan men's international footballers Dhaka Wanderers Club players Bangladesh Police FC players Mohammedan SC (Dhaka) players Victoria Sporting Club players Abahani Limited Dhaka managers Bangladeshi football managers Asian Games footballers for Pakistan Footballers at the 1958 Asian Games Recipients of the Bangladesh National Sports Award 20th-century Bangladeshi sportsmen People from Jhalokati district 20th-century Pakistani sportsmen