National Stadium, Dhaka () is a multipurpose sports arena and the national stadium of

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

. Located in the

Motijheel Motijheel () is a central business district and a thana of Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is Dhaka's primary central business district, and also the nation's largest commercial and financial hub. Motijheel, located immediately adjacent to Dhaka's zero ...

area of

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; , ), List of renamed places in Bangladesh, formerly known as Dacca, is the capital city, capital and list of cities and towns in Bangladesh, largest city of Bangladesh. It is one of the list of largest cities, largest and list o ...

, it is predominantly used for

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

matches and serves as the home venue for the

Bangladesh national football team The Bangladesh national football team () is the national recognised football team of Bangladesh and is controlled by the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF). It is a member of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) since 1973 and of FIFA sin ...

. The stadium is well known for hosting a high-profile international friendly between

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

and

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

in 2011. The stadium has undergone multiple renovations. Prior to the refurbishment for the opening ceremony of the

2011 Cricket World Cup The 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup was the tenth Cricket World Cup. It was played in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, while the latter hosted World Cup matches for the first time. India won the tournament, defeating Sri Lanka by six wickets in the 2 ...

, its capacity was nearly 55,000. Despite its reduced capacity of 36,000 after renovation, it was the largest stadium in Bangladesh. It was renovated again 021-2025and the capacity reduced to 22,085.

History

Early history

National Stadium, Dhaka, originally known as Dhaka Stadium, was built for

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

in 1954 on a vast empty land located to the northwest of the current

Bangabhaban The Bangabhaban () is the official residence and principal workplace of the President of Bangladesh, located on Bangabhaban Road, and short road connecting Dilkusha, Dhaka, Dilkusha Avenue, Dhaka. It is surrounded by the Bangabhaban Gardens (fo ...

(the Presidential Palace). The stadium is the only venue worldwide to have hosted the inaugural home fixtures 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, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

and Bangladesh. India were the visitors on both occasions: in 1954–55, when Dacca was the capital of

East Pakistan East Pakistan was the eastern province of Pakistan between 1955 and 1971, restructured and renamed from the province of East Bengal and covering the territory of the modern country of Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India and Burma, wit ...

, and in 1976–77, when the first unofficial Test match was held between

against the touring 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 First Division League, 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 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 club sides from leading football nations of Asia to compete. Many renowned football pundits regard this competition as a predecessor of the AFC Champions League ...

, which by many is considered to be first organised international competition that involved club teams around Asia. The

1978 AFC Youth Championship The 1978 AFC Youth Championship was held in Dhaka, Bangladesh from 5 October to 28 October 1978. It also served as qualification for the 1979 FIFA World Youth Championship. Teams * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Venue Group stage Gr ...

marked the first major international tournament hosted by both the stadium and the country. The stadium underwent renovations for the occasion, and all 40 matches took place there, with Korea Republic and

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

being crowned joint champions. 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 Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and social activist. A global cultural icon, widely known by the nickname "The Greatest", he is often regarded as the gr ...

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

. Other than being used for the

opening ceremony, the stadium has been mainly used for football purposes since the turn of the decade. In March 2005, the

Bangladesh Football Federation Bangladesh Football Federation (, ''Bānglādesh fūṭbôl fēḍārēshôn'') is the governing body that administers the sport of association football in Bangladesh. It is in charge of running the country's men's and women's national teams, ...

organised the Independence Day Gold Cup to mark its permanent possession of the stadium. The stadium has hosted 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 ...

three times to date. First during the

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

edition when Bangladesh lifted the trophy for the first time in history, in front of 46,000 local supporters. Since then the

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

and most recently the

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 ...

editions of the tournament have all taken place at the stadium. Ever since the inception of the

Bangladesh Premier League Bangladesh Premier League (), also known as Dutch-Bangla Bank BPL for sponsorship reasons, is a professional Twenty20 cricket league in Bangladesh organised by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB). It was formed in 2011 by the BCB, after the su ...

, in 2007, the stadium has been used has been used to host majority of the league seasons. On 6 September 2011, the stadium hosted an international friendly football match between the full-strength

and

teams, featuring

Lionel Messi Lionel Andrés "Leo" Messi (; born 24 June 1987) is an Argentine professional Association football, footballer who plays as a forward (association football), forward for and Captain (association football), captains both Major League Soccer ...

Sergio Agüero Sergio Leonel Agüero del Castillo (born 2 June 1988), also known as Kun Agüero, is an Argentine former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Forward (association football)#Striker, striker. He is regarded as one of th ...

Javier Mascherano Javier Alejandro Mascherano (; born 8 June 1984) is an Argentine Association football, football manager and former player who is the current head coach of Major League Soccer club Inter Miami. As a player, he played as a centre-back or defensive ...

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

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional Football club (association football), football club based in Madrid. The club competes in La Liga, th ...

teammates

Gonzalo Higuaín Gonzalo Gerardo Higuaín (; born 10 December 1987) is a former professional footballer who played as a striker. Nicknamed ''El Pipita'' or ''Pipa,'' he is considered to be one of the best strikers of his generation and was a prolific striker kn ...

and

Ángel Di María Ángel Fabián Di María (; born 14 February 1988) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a right winger for Primeira Liga club Benfica. Widely regarded as one of the greatest Argentine players of all time and one of the best pl ...

, and an own goal from Nigeria's

Elderson Echiéjilé Elderson Uwa Echiéjilé (born 20 January 1988) is a Nigerian former professional footballer who played as a left-back for Nigeria national team from 2009 until 2018. He began his career at Bendel Insurance and moved to Europe in 2007, joinin ...

with

Chinedu Obasi Chinedu Ogbuke "Edu" Obasi (born 1 June 1986) is a Nigerian former 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 footba ...

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, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

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 the 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 the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

cases worldwide. After the fall of the

Sheikh Hasina Sheikh Hasina (''née'' Wazed; born 28 September 1947) is a Bangladeshi politician who served as the tenth prime minister of Bangladesh from June 1996 to July 2001 and again from January 2009 to August 2024. Premiership of Sheikh Hasina, Her ...

led

Awami League The Awami League, officially known as Bangladesh Awami League, is a major List of political parties in Bangladesh, political party in Bangladesh. The oldest existing political party in the country, the party played the leading role in achievin ...

government, Bangabandhu National Stadium was renamed to National Stadium, Dhaka.

Refurbishment

The stadium underwent its initial renovation in preparation for the

, the country's first major international tournament hosting. With a budget of Tk 1.2cr, the East Gallery was constructed, and the country's first-ever women's gallery was added. Additionally, the VIP gallery received a redecoration. The newly renovated stadium hosted a total of forty games from played under floodlights. The stadium hosted the opening ceremony of the

co-hosted by

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

and India on 17 February 2011. The stadium was exclusively modernised and renovated for 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 device that emits light when current flows through it. Electrons in the semiconductor recombine with electron holes, releasing energy in the form of photons. The color of the light (corresp ...

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 The state of the art (SOTA or SotA, sometimes cutting edge, leading edge, or bleeding edge) refers to the highest level of general development, as of a device, technique, or scientific field achieved at a particular time. However, in some contex ...

facilities suitable for international sporting events. From September 2021, the stadium underwent a year-long renovation process scheduled to conclude in early 2023. The

has planned to host future football-related events at the venue, transforming it into a modernized football facility. The renovation includes field development, construction of sheds in galleries, installation of chairs in galleries, modernization of toilets for international and local players, installation of floodlights, CCTV cameras, generators, LED giant screens, new athletic tracks, digital advertising boards, media centers, ticket counters, Dope Test Room Building, Medical Room, VIP Box Construction, President's Box, Toilet development, medical equipment, sub-station equipment, AC, and solar panel supply.

International football

2018 SAFF Championship

The stadium was the venue for the

2018 SAFF Championship The 2018 SAFF Championship, also known as the 2018 SAFF Suzuki Cup for sponsorship reasons, was the 12th edition of the SAFF Championship, the biennial international men's association football, football championship of South Asia organized by So ...

2009 SAFF Championship

The stadium was the venue for the

2009 SAFF Championship The 2009 SAFF Championship, South Asian Football Federation Championship was hosted by Bangladesh from 4 to 13 December 2009. Bangladesh was awarded to host the tournament after the withdrawal of original hosts India. After India's reluctance to ...

2003 SAFF Gold Cup

The stadium was the venue for the

2003 SAFF Gold Cup The 2003 SAFF Gold Cup was held in Dhaka, Bangladesh between 10 January 2003 and 20 January 2003. All matches were played at the Bangabandhu National Stadium. Originally scheduled to be held between 26 January 2002 and 5 February 2002, the tourna ...

Bangladesh Premier League

References

External links

*
BNS at BanglaFootball.net
{{Bangladesh women's national football team 1954 establishments in East Bengal Bangladesh national football team Football venues in Bangladesh National stadiums Sports venues in Dhaka Sport in Dhaka Gulistan, Dhaka Sports complexes in the Bangladesh

History

Early history

Home of Bangladesh football

Refurbishment

International football

2018 SAFF Championship

2009 SAFF Championship

2003 SAFF Gold Cup

Bangladesh Premier League

See also

References

External links