SYLHET: The six-nation Bangabandhu Gold Cup International Football Tournament is scheduled to kick off at the Sylhet District Stadium on Thursday afternoon.

Hosts Bangladesh will play Malaysia in the opening match of the tournament in Sylhet at 5:00pm after a colorful inaugural ceremony.

Finance Minister AMA Muhith will inaugurate the tournament as chief guest. The opening ceremony includes a brief cultural show, showcasing Sylhet's culture and heritage.

The half-hour-long show will feature tribal dance performances as well as performances by popular singers Shuvro Dev and MiLa and a rendition of a Shah Abdul Karim song, said ceremonies committee chairman Shamsul Haque Chowdhury.

Addressing a pre-match press conference around 2:30pm Wednesday, both the teams expressed hopefulness for winning the opening match.

Singapore and Sri Lanka teams have already arrived in Sylhet around 9:30pm Wednesday but Thailand is yet to arrive. 

Bangladesh Football Federation Public Relation Officer Ahsan Ahmed Amit told banglanews the opening ceremony will be completed within 4:00pm. As per schedule, players will begin practice one hour prior to the start of the match.

On the other hand, Sylhet Metropolitan police additional deputy commissioner (media) Rahmat Ullah said tight security measures have been taken centering the tournament to ensure security for the participating teams and fans.

All chambers of doctors, pharmacies, shop which housed at the stadium market remained shut for the sake of overall security, he added.

Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bahrain and Singapore are the other participating teams.

BDST: 0923 HRS, JAN 29, 2015