| Jamil Akhtar | |
| Birth Date: | Unknown |
| Death Date: | Unknown |
| Death Place: | Pakistan |
| Position: | Forward |
| Years1: | 1950–1954 |
| Clubs1: | Rangers FC |
| Years2: | 1950–1953 |
| Clubs2: | Punjab |
| Years3: | 1954–1955 |
| Clubs3: | East Bengal |
| Clubs4: | Pakistan Railways |
| Nationalyears1: | 1952–1955 |
| Nationalteam1: | Pakistan |
| Birth Place: | British India |
Jamil Akhtar (Urdu:) was a Pakistani footballer who played as a forward. Considered as one of the earliest pioneering footballers in Pakistan history,[1] he was the fifth captain in the history of the Pakistan national football team after Osman Jan, Abdul Wahid Durrani, Muhammad Sharif and Moideen Kutty.[2] Akhtar also played for East Bengal in India.[3]
Akhtar played for Lahore club Rangers FC throughout his career.[4] He represented Punjab University football team from 1948 to 1951. In 1950, he played for Rangers FC at the Rovers Cup in 1951 in Bombay. He won the Lahore District Soccer Championship with the club in June 1951.[5] He also represented Punjab in the National Football Championship from 1950 to 1953, captaining the team in the last year. He also played for Pakistan Railways at the National Football Championship.[6] [7] [8] [9]
In 1954 he played in India for East Bengal.[10] In 1958, Akhtar played for Lahore club Zamindars FC.[11]
Akhtar first represented Pakistan in the 1952 Colombo Cup in Ceylon. He also played for Pakistan at the 1953 Colombo Cup.[12]
He also represented Pakistan at the 1954 Asian Games at Philippines. He scored a brace against Singapore 6–2 in a group match, where Masood Fakhri had notably scored a hat-trick, and Moideen Kutty scoring the resting goal of the match.[13] [14] Akhtar subsequently became the fifth captain in the history of the Pakistan national football team at the 1954 Colombo Cup, scoring a goal against Ceylon in a 2–1 victory.[15] He also scored in a 4–2 victory against Burma at the next 1955 Colombo Cup. At the exhibition matches at the beginning of the tournament, he scored a hat trick against an East Pakistan XI on 14 December in a 3–1 victory.
Note: Exact figures of Pakistani players before 1989 are not yet known and yet to be researched. There is also some conjecture on the status of several games regarding recognition by FIFA as "A" internationals during that period. Below are goals recorded.
| - | 24 April 1954 | Jalan Besar Stadium, Kallang, Singapore | Colony XI ‡ | 4–1 | Non-FIFA Friendly | [16] | |
| 1 | 2 May 1954 | Rizal Memorial Stadium, Manila, Philippines | 1–1 | 6–2 | 1954 Asian Games | ||
| 2 | 2–1 | ||||||
| 3 | 21 December 1954 | Calcutta FC Ground, Kolkata, India | 2–1 | 1954 Colombo Cup | |||
| - | 14 December 1955 | Dacca Stadium, Dhaka, East Pakistan |  East Pakistan XI ‡ | 3–1 | Exhibition game | ||
| - | |||||||
| - | |||||||
| 4 | 17 December 1955 | 4–2 | 1955 Colombo Cup |