Bangabandhu National Stadium ( bn, বঙ্গবন্ধু জাতীয় স্টেডিয়াম, ''

romanised Romanization or romanisation, in linguistics, is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, and ...

: Bongobondhu jateeyo stediyaam''), also known as Dhaka Stadium, and formerly known as Dacca Stadium, is the national stadium and a multipurpose sports arena in

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest Bengali-speaking city. It is the eighth largest and sixth most densely populated city i ...

, Bangladesh. It is located in the

Motijheel Motijheel ( bn, মতিঝিল) is a ''thana'' (administrative division) of Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is at the heart of the city (the General Post Office is considered the zero point of Dhaka). Motijheel is the major business and commercial hub ...

area in the heart of the city. Since 2005, it has been used for football matches and is the home for both the men's and

women's A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardl ...

national football team. The Bangabandhu National Stadium is one of the main football venues in Dhaka, together with the 25,000 capacity

Bir Shreshtha Mustafa Kamal Stadium Bir Sherestha Shaheed Shipahi Mostafa Kamal Stadium, (বীরশ্রেষ্ঠ শহিদ সিপাহি মোস্তফা কামাল ফুটবল স্টেডিয়াম) known as Kamalapur Stadium, is a football st ...

. The Bangabandhu Stadium, is well known for hosting an international friendly between

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

and

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

in 2011. The stadium has been renovated several times, most recently for the opening ceremony of the 2011 Cricket World Cup. It had a capacity close to 55,000 before the most recent renovation, but with a new capacity of 36,000 it is still the largest stadium in

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

. Its current name was given to honour

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Sheikh Mujibur Rahman ( bn, শেখ মুজিবুর রহমান; 17 March 1920 – 15 August 1975), often shortened as Sheikh Mujib or Mujib and widely known as Bangabandhu (meaning ''Friend of Bengal''), was a Bengali politi ...

, the father of the nation, also known as "Bangabandhu" or "Friend of Bengal".

History

Early history

The Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka is the only venue in the world to have hosted an inaugural home fixture for two

Test Test(s), testing, or TEST may refer to: * Test (assessment), an educational assessment intended to measure the respondents' knowledge or other abilities Arts and entertainment * ''Test'' (2013 film), an American film * ''Test'' (2014 film), ...

nations:

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

and

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/nowiki>India were the visitors on both occasions: in 1954–55, when Dacca was the capital of East Pakistan, and in 1976–77, when the first unofficial Test match was held between Bangladesh cricket team, Bangladesh against the touring Marylebone Cricket Club, MCC from England. And the following year the Sri Lankan national team visited Bangladesh to play a few one-day, two-day and three-day unofficial matches against BCCB XI and Bangladesh National team. After that teams like Deccan Blues from India and MCC toured Bangladesh several times to play against BCCB XI and Bangladesh national team respectively. Alongside cricket, the stadium was also known to host the historic

Dhaka League Dhaka Senior Division Football League, also referred as First Division Football League, is the third tier of football league in Bangladesh. Until 2006, it was the top-tier league of the country. It was established in 1948 as Dhaka League, while B ...

, which was the country's premier football league even before independence of Bangladesh. In the 80s when football's popularity was skyrocketing, the

Dhaka Derby The Dhaka Derby is a football rivalry between the Dhaka teams of Abahani and Mohammedan, although the rivalry was bigger in the past, it is still considered to be the biggest game in the country's domestic football scene. Mohammedan was foun ...

attracted thousands of fans into the stadium from all over the country. The stadium regularly hosted the now defunct

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

, which by many is considered to be first organized international competition that involved club teams around

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

. The 1978 AFC Youth Championship was the first major international tournament the stadium hosted. The stadium was also renovated for the occasion, the East Gallery was constructed and a women's gallery was arranged for the first time. The VIP gallery was also redecorated, as this was the first international football related tournament being held in Bangladesh. A total of forty games were played in the newly renovated stadium during the tournament held in October. The stadium has a history of hosting number of historic sports event starting from cricket, football, hockey to boxing. In February 1978, boxer Muhammad Ali fought an exhibition boxing match at the stadium, the then Dacca Stadium, with a 12-year-old Bengali boy.

Home of Bangladesh football

With a purpose-built cricket stadium being constructed on the outskirts of the city, the ground was taken out of commission at the end of the 2004–05 season, and handed over for the sole use of the Bangladesh national football team. Other than being used for the 2011 Cricket World Cup opening ceremony, the stadium has been mainly used for football purposes since the turn of the decade. The stadium has hosted the SAFF Championship three times to date. First during the 2003 edition when Bangladesh lifted the trophy for the first time in history, in front of 46,000 local supporters. Since then the 2009 and most recently the 2018 editions of the tournament have all taken place at the stadium. Ever since the inception of the Bangladesh Premier League, in 2007, the stadium has been used has been used to host majority of the league seasons. On 6 September 2011, Bangabandhu National Stadium hosted an international friendly football match between the full-strength

and

teams, featuring

Lionel Messi Lionel Andrés Messi (; born 24 June 1987), also known as Leo Messi, is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a forward for club Paris Saint-Germain and captains the Argentina national team. Widely regarded as one of the ...

Sergio Agüero Sergio Leonel Agüero del Castillo (born 2 June 1988), also known as Kun Agüero, is an Argentine former professional footballer who played as a striker. He is considered one of the best strikers of his generation and one of the greatest play ...

Javier Mascherano Javier Alejandro Mascherano (born 8 June 1984) is an Argentine professional football coach and former player who is the head coach of the Argentina national under-20 team. As a player, he played as a centre-back or defensive midfielder, most not ...

and

Mikel John Obi Mikel John Obi (born John Michael Nchekwube Obinna; 22 April 1987) is a Nigerian former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder. Mikel began his career with local club Plateau United, before joining Norwegian club Lyn at th ...

among the other star players of both nations. Argentina won 3–1 with goals from then-

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...

teammates

Gonzalo Higuaín Gonzalo Gerardo Higuaín (; born 10 December 1987) is an Argentine former professional footballer who played as a striker. Nicknamed ''El Pipita'' or ''Pipa'', Higuaín was a prolific striker, known for his eye for goal, strong physique, and o ...

and

Ángel Di María Ángel Fabián Di María (born 14 February 1988) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays for club Juventus and the Argentina national team. He can play as either a winger or attacking midfielder. Di María began his career with R ...

, and an own goal from Nigeria's Elderson Echiéjilé with Chinedu Obasi scoring Nigeria's lone goal. Bangladeshi referee

Tayeb Shamsuzzaman Hasan Tayeb Shamsuzzaman (born 9 January 1970) is a Bangladeshi football referee who has been a full international referee for FIFA. Shamsuzzaman became a FIFA referee in 1999. He served as a referee at the 2002, 2010, and 2014 FIFA World Cup q ...

officiated the game, which drew 25,000 spectators despite ticket prices starting at US$100. On 13 November 2020, the stadium hosted the first of two matches between Bangladesh and

Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...

during the Mujib Borsho Fifa International Football Series, arranged by the Bangladesh Football Federation. Bangladesh won the first game of the series 2–0, while the second game which was held four days later, finished goalless which lead the hosts to clinch the series on aggregate. The friendlies helped football return to Bangabandhu National Stadium and the country after a long absence due to the rise of

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

cases worldwide.

Modern use

Currently, the stadium is used by the Bangladesh national football team and

Bangladesh women's national football team The Bangladesh women's national football team is the women's national association football team of Bangladesh controlled by the Bangladesh Football Federation under the supervision of the women's football committee. It is a member of the Asian ...

and also for

athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competi ...

. The stadium is also used to host the

Bangladesh Football Premier League The Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), officially known as TVS Bangladesh Premier League for sponsorship reasons, is a top tier of Bangladeshi professional football league pyramid. It is run directly by the professional football league committee ...

and

Bangladesh Championship League Bangladesh Championship League (BCL) is the second-tier football league of Bangladesh run by the Bangladesh Football Federation. It was founded in 2012. The league is also known as TVS Championship League for sponsorship agreements from 2018– ...

games. The total

seating capacity Seating capacity is the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, in terms of both the physical space available, and limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that ...

is about 36,000. The stadium is located next to National Hockey Stadium. The stadium was used for competitions of the 2010 South Asian Games, including football and athletics.

Tournament results

2018 SAFF Championship

2009 SAFF Championship

2003 SAFF Gold Cup

Cricket stats and records

The venue hosted its last international cricket match on 1 March 2005. After 2005, hosting of International Cricket status was shifted to

Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium The Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium (SBNCS; bn, শের-ই-বাংলা জাতীয় ক্রিকেট স্টেডিয়াম), also called Mirpur Stadium, is an International cricket, International cricket ground ...

, which was situated in

Mirpur, Dhaka Mirpur ( bn, মীরপুর/মিরপুর) is a ''thana'' of Dhaka city, Bangladesh. It is bounded by Pallabi Thana to the north, Mohammadpur Thana to the south, Kafrul to the east, and Savar Upazila to the west. History Mirpur thana ...

. Till 2005 the venue has hosted * Test matches – 17 *

One Day International A One Day International (ODI) is a form of limited overs cricket, played between two teams with international status, in which each team faces a fixed number of overs, currently 50, with the game lasting up to 9 hours. The Cricket World C ...

– 58 *

T20I A Twenty20 International (T20I) is a form of cricket, played between two of the international members of the International Cricket Council (ICC), in which each team faces a maximum of twenty overs. The matches have top-class status and are the ...

– 0

Renovation: 2021 Restructuring into a modern football stadium

From September 2021, the stadium went under a year-long renovation process, which has been scheduled to end in early 2023, as Bangladesh Football Federation have planned to organize future football related events on the ground, and transform it into a modernized football venue. Field development, construction of sheds in galleries, installation of chairs in galleries, modernization of toilets for international and local players, installation of floodlights, installation of CCTV cameras, installation of generators, installation of LED giant screens, installation of new athletic tracks, installation of digital advertising boards, creation of media centers, ticket counters, Dope Test Room Building, Medical Room, VIP Box Construction, President Box, Toilet development, medical equipment, sub-station equipment, AC and solar panel supply will be the works involved in the renovation of the stadium.

Renovation : 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup, Opening Ceremony

Bangabandhu National Stadium hosted the opening ceremony of the 2011 Cricket World Cup co-hosted by

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

and

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

on 17 February 2011. The stadium was exclusively modernised and renovated into a world class stadium to host the opening ceremony. The capacity of the stadium had been decreased to 36,000, a large

LED A light-emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor Electronics, device that Light#Light sources, emits light when Electric current, current flows through it. Electrons in the semiconductor recombine with electron holes, releasing energy i ...

screen had been installed, a modern roof had also been attached over the press box. The entrances and VIP box have also been upgraded to host the grand gala inaugural ceremony. The press box, along with a refreshment stand and the VIP box have been revamped. The stadium now has state of the art facilities suitable for international sporting events.

References

External links

BNS at BanglaFootball.net
{{Bangladesh women's national football team Bangladesh national football team Football venues in Bangladesh National stadiums Sports venues in Dhaka Sport in Dhaka Memorials to Sheikh Mujibur Rahman