Bangladesh rout Turkmenistan 7-0 to seal spot in AFC Women’s Asian Cup

Bangladesh women’s football team cruised to a commanding 7-0 victory over Turkmenistan on Sunday, wrapping up their AFC Women’s Asian Cup qualifying campaign in style and finishing as unbeaten champions of Group C.

Already assured of qualification ahead of this final group game in Yangon, Myanmar, Bangladesh needed no result to progress but played with full intensity regardless. The emphatic win took them to nine points from three matches, scoring 16 goals and conceding just once — against hosts Myanmar.

Bangladesh made a dream start at the Thuwunna Stadium, with Swapna Rani opening the scoring in the 3rd minute. Shamshunnahar added two more in the 6th and 13th minutes to make it 3-0. The onslaught continued as Monica struck in the 16th, Rituparna found the net a minute later, and Tahura Khatun scored Bangladesh’s sixth in the 20th minute. Just before halftime, Rituparna netted again to give Bangladesh a remarkable 7-0 lead at the break.

The second half saw Bangladesh push for more, but they could not extend the scoreline further. Had they managed three more goals, it would have been their first-ever double-digit win at senior international level and the biggest victory margin in the team’s history.

Under coach Peter Butler, Bangladesh have shown significant improvement. While they failed to win a single match in the last two Asian Cup qualifying cycles, this time they not only dominated their group but also defeated Myanmar — a team with regular Asian Cup appearances — in an earlier game, highlighting Bangladesh’s rising stature in Asian women’s football.

Bangladesh had started their campaign with another 7-0 win, against Bahrain, scoring five times in the first half of that match. Turkmenistan, meanwhile, had lost their opener 8-0 to Myanmar.

The Bangladesh team will return home from Myanmar on Monday night, where the Bangladesh Football Federation plans to host a special reception for the players to honor their achievement.