Bangabandhu National Stadium

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Bangabandhu National Stadium, Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Bangabandhu National Stadium is the national stadium and main sports arena in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is located at Motijheel at the heart of the capital city, Dhaka. The stadium is variously known as Number 1 National Stadium, Dhaka Stadium etc. Its current name was given to honour Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the father of the nation, also known as "Banga bandhu" or "friend of Bengal".

Currently, the stadium is used for football. Total seating capacity is 36000. It was also home to the Bangladeshi cricket team until March 1, 2005.

The Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka is the only venue in the world to have hosted an inaugural home fixture for two Test nations. India were the visitors on both occasions: in 1954-55, when Dacca (sic) was the capital of East Pakistan, and 46 years later, when Bangladesh became the tenth nation to attain Test status. Situated in the throbbing heart of Dhaka, the Bangabandhu and the nearby National Hockey Stadium are so incorporated into the daily hustle and bustle of Bangladeshi life that it is hard to tell from the outside that they are in fact sporting venues, especially given the plethora of electrical goods stalls that have sprung up all around the concourse. 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 national football squad.

The stadium has the unique distinction of being the only venue in the world to host the inaugural home fixture for two Test-playing nations. India were the visitors on both occasions: in 1954–55, when Dhaka was the capital of East Pakistan, and 46 years later, when Bangladesh became the tenth nation to attain Test status. The stadium is located next to National Hockey Stadium. Bangladesh registered its first win at home at Bangabandhu National Stadium against India on 26 December 2004.

More information and pictures of BNS can be found here.