Dhaka League is the premier regional football league in Bangladesh played by clubs in Dhaka. Until 2000, it was the top-tier league of the country.
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First in 1948, a year after the independence of Pakistan and India the Dhaka League became the center of attraction for the people of Dhaka, which was then in East Pakistan in the 1960s. Sports clubs like Dhaka Wanderers and Mohammedan Sporting Club were the more successful ones and grew the base for league football among Bengalis. Dhaka's football grew popular and footballers from here were selected for the Pakistan national team.
After 23 seasons, the Dhaka League stopped for two years in Bangladesh's liberation war but continued the following year. In the years before 2000 it became the most renowned and premier football league in the country as no national league was introduced. It gained more fans and spectators than any other football competitions in Bangladesh but unfortunately the 2000s saw it losing its quality with top-level teams leaving for the national league.
The league produced premium clubs like Abahani Krira Chakra, Mohammedan Sporting Club, Muktijoddha Sangsad KS, Brothers Union and Sheikh Russell KC which are the "big fives" in the Bangladesh League today.
Only the new Senior Division league (Bashundhara Senior Division Football League for sponsorship reasons) was held in 2010.
N.B.Among the entrants of the Bangladesh League, only Arambagh enters the Dhaka League (clubs are forced to use separate teams for the two competitions).
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The number of national championships that clubs in Dhaka have attained.
Club |
Number of Championships |
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Mohammedan Sporting Club | 19 |
Abahani Ltd. | 11 |
Dhaka Wanderers | 7 |
Bangladesh IDC [includes East Pakistan IDC] | 4 |
Victoria SC | 3 |
Muktijoddha Sangsad KS | 2 |
Brothers Union | 2 |
Bengal Government Press | 1 |
Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation | 1 |
East Pakistan Gymkhana | 1 |
Azad | 1 |
Fakirerpool Young Men's Club | 1 |
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