Mohamed Arif (; 11 August 1985 – 25 June 2024), better known by his nickname Baka, was a Maldivian professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played as a

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

for

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

National league National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

club Kanbawza Football Club and the Maldives national team. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the Maldives, he was among the most successful players in the country. Arif began playing for Island FC at the age of 19 in 2004. During his international career, he was integral to the team's victories in the

SAFF Championship The SAFF Championship (erstwhile SAARC Gold Cup and SAFF Gold Cup), is the primary association football competition contested by the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the South Asian Football Fede ...

, first in 2008 and again in 2018. Arif was awarded the Best Football Player of the Year in 2010. He also secured the title of Second Best Player for 2011 and Third Best Player for 2013. He received the nickname "Baka" from his former coach Mauroof Ahmed, who named him after a foreign midfielder who had previously played for

Victory Sports Club Victory Sports Club is a Maldivian sports club based in Malé, founded 3 July 1971. Victory is one of the most successful football clubs in Maldives, winning a record 21 national championships. They have also won the Dhivehi Premier League tw ...

Early life

Mohamed Arif was born on 11 August 1985 in Hithadhoo in Addu.

Career

Arif's football career was defined by his journey through various clubs and tournaments. He began in 2004 with

Island Football Club AT Sports Club is a Maldivian professional football club based in Malé. VB Addu FC is the former VB Sports club, which was re-branded on 14 January 2012.Club Valencia Club Valencia is a Republic of the Maldives, Maldivian professional football (soccer), football club based in Malé. Nicknamed ''The Sunrisers'', the club most recently competed in the Dhivehi Premier League, the top tier of Football in Maldives ...

for the 2008 season of the Dhivehi League, showcasing his skills as he transitioned to New Radiant SC for the following two seasons. Returning to

VB Sports Club AT Sports Club is a Maldivian professional football club based in Malé. VB Addu FC is the former VB Sports club, which was re-branded on 14 January 2012.Dhiraagu Dhiraagu () is the first Maldivian telecommunications company, which was founded in 1988. The company was created as a joint venture of the Maldivian government and Cable & Wireless and had a monopoly on the entire industry in the country unt ...

Dhivehi League triumph that year. His career path continued with brief spells at Eagles Sports Club in 2012 and Maziya Sports Club in 2013, where his performance led to a contract extension. In January 2014, Arif ventured internationally, joining

's Kanbawza Football Club (KBZ FC) in their premier division and

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

setup, before returning to the

Maldives The Maldives, officially the Republic of Maldives, and historically known as the Maldive Islands, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in South Asia located in the Indian Ocean. The Maldives is southwest of Sri Lanka and India, abou ...

and signing with

Club Green Streets Club Green Streets is a professional football club based in Malé, Maldives that competes in the Dhivehi Premier League, the top flight of Maldivian football. The club was founded in 2010, starting in the third division, and earned promotion to ...

in May 2019. He later moved to

United Victory United Victory is a Maldivian professional football club. They have qualified for the Dhivehi Premier League for the first time, after crowning the 2015 Second Division Football Tournament The 2015 Second Division Football Tournament was th ...

in September 2020, further enriching his professional experience.

International

On the international stage, Arif has been a mainstay in the

senior national team, known for his role as a midfielder and playmaker. His notable contributions came in the

, where he played a crucial part in multiple championship-winning campaigns for Maldives, including victories in

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015, and

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

. Arif's career trajectory underscores his versatility and impact both domestically and internationally, solidifying his reputation as a significant figure in Maldivian football.

Illness and death

In June 2024, Arif went to perform Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia on the invitation by

King King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...

Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (; born 31 December 1935) has been King of Saudi Arabia since 2015, and was Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia from 2015 to 2022. He is the 25th son of King Abdulaziz, the founder of Saudi Arabia. He assumed the thro ...

. After he returned to Maldives, it is said that he contracted a viral disease during his visit when he had to be admitted to the

Intensive Care Unit An intensive care unit (ICU), also known as an intensive therapy unit or intensive treatment unit (ITU) or critical care unit (CCU), is a special department of a hospital or health care facility that provides intensive care medicine. An inten ...

of ADK Hospital. He died on 25 June 2024, while receiving treatment. Arif was 38. His death has also caused his supporters and many people to mourn and flood with Messages of Condolences, notables being the Football Association of Maldives (FAM), Maldivian President

Mohamed Muizzu Mohamed Muizzu (born 15 June 1978) is a Maldivian politician and engineer who has been serving as the 8th president of the Maldives and leader of the People's National Congress (Maldives), People's National Congress since 2023. He previously ...

, Maldivian Vice President Hussain Mohamed Latheef, and AFC President

Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa (; born 2 November 1965) is a Bahraini football administrator. he is Senior Vice-president of the FIFA Council. He has been president of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) since 2 May 2013. Before beco ...

. It was later found out through documents that the cause of his death was

Meningococcal disease Meningococcal disease is a serious infection caused by ''Neisseria meningitidis'', also known as meningococcus, a gram negative diplococcus. Meningococcal disease includes meningitis, meningococcal septicemia, or a combination of both, which c ...

. His funeral prayer was held after

Fajr prayer The fajr prayer, alternatively transliterated as fadjr prayer, and also known as the subh prayer, is a salah (ritual prayer) offered in the early morning. Consisting of two rak'a ("bows"), it is performed between the break of dawn and sunrise. ...

at Masjid Al-Sultan Muhammad Thakurufaanu Al-Auzam (Islamic Centre), which was led by the Head

Imam Imam (; , '; : , ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Islam, Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a prayer leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Salah, Islamic prayers, serve as community leaders, ...

of the Islamic Centre, Sheikh Mohamed Latheef. After his funeral prayer, he was taken to be buried at Galolhu Cemetery.

Honours

Maldives *

Club Valencia *

Dhivehi League Dhivehi League was a Maldives, Maldivian football (soccer), football league organized by the Football Association of Maldives. 8 clubs competed in the league, which was the top level of the Football in Maldives, Maldivian football league system. ...

Maldives FA Cup The Maldives FA Cup is Maldives's premier knockout tournament in men's association football, football. Previous winners Previous winners are: *1988: Club Valencia *1989: New Radiant *1990: Club Lagoons *1991: New Radiant ...

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

Victory Sports Club * Maldives FA Cup:

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

VB Sports Club *

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

* Maldives FA Cup:

Maldivian FA Charity Shield Maldivian FA Charity Shield is a Maldivian football match between the Dhivehi Premier League and the Maldives FA Cup champions of the past season. The winner donates part of its cash prize to charity. Matches Below is a list of the Charity Shie ...

: 2012 Maziya S&RC * Maldives FA Cup:

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

* Maldivian FA Charity Shield:

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

Malé League Malé League used to be the competition for football (soccer), football clubs of the Maldives based in Malé. The top four teams qualified for the Dhivehi League, and bottom four played qualifying round with top teams from the Second Division Fo ...

Individual * Haveeru Footballer of the Year: 2010

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Arif, Mohamed 1985 births 2024 deaths Maldivian men's footballers Men's association football forwards Maldives men's international footballers Club Valencia players New Radiant S.C. players Victory Sports Club players Shan United F.C. players Club Eagles players Dhivehi Premier League players Myanmar National League players Footballers at the 2006 Asian Games Footballers at the 2014 Asian Games Asian Games footballers for the Maldives Maldivian expatriate men's footballers Maldivian expatriate sportspeople in Myanmar Expatriate men's footballers in Myanmar People from Addu City