National Football League (Bangladesh)

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Not to be confused with National Football Championship (Bangladesh).
National Football League
Organising bodiesBangladesh Football Federation
Founded2000
Folded2006
CountryBangladesh Bangladesh
RegionBangladesh Bangladesh
ConfederationAFC
Last championsMohammedan (2nd title)
Most championshipsMohammedan SC (2 titles)
Websitebff.com.bd

The National Football League (Bengali: জাতীয় ফুটবল লীগ) was a semi-professional association football league in Bangladesh, and the first football league in the country to be organized on a national scale.

From 2000 to 2006, the National Football League was contested by club champions from various districts (Chittagong, Rajshahi, Barishal, and Sylhet), in addition to the top three finishing teams from the country's premier division at the time, the Dhaka Premier Division League (Dhaka League).[1]

In 2006, the league was folded, as the Dhaka Premier Division League was replaced by the country's first professional top-tier national league, the Bangladesh Premier League.

History[edit]

In 2000, the Bangladesh Football Federation established the National Football League (NFL), which was played alongside the country's top-tier league at the time, the Dhaka Premier Division League (Dhaka League). The league was introduced in order for different district champions to get a better platform, as the top-tier league only featured clubs from Dhaka.[2]

The league included the top 3 finishing teams from each Dhaka Premier Division League season, along with district league champions of Chittagong, Rajshahi and the winners of a playoff between the champions of Sylhet and Barisal. From the 2003 season, the winners of the National League were given a spot in the group-stages of the AFC Cup instead of Dhaka Premier Division League champions.[3]

From 2005 to 2007, the Dhaka Premier Division League was not held, which meant the National Football League was the only functioning competition which had the country's top clubs participate, aside from than the domestic cup competitions.[4][5]

In 2007, the Bangladesh Premier League replaced the Dhaka Premier Division League as the country's top tier. This marked the beginning of Bangladesh's first professional football league contested on a national scale, which meant that a National Football League would no longer be required.[6]

Sponsorship[edit]

Nitol-Tata Group was the title sponsor of the entirety of the competition. For sponsorship reason, the competition was also known as Nitol-Tata National Football League.[7]

Period Sponsor Amount Print Media Ref.
2000–2005 Nitol-Tata Group 25 lakhs BDT Daily Inqilab [8]

Results[edit]

Season Winner Runner-up Third-place Top Scorer Goals
2000 Abahani Limited Dhaka Mohammedan SC Chittagong Abahani Limited
2001–02 Mohammedan SC Abahani Limited Dhaka None
2003 Muktijoddha Sangsad KC Mohammedan SC Abahani Limited Dhaka Bangladesh Saifur Rahman Moni 7
2004 Brothers Union Muktijoddha Sangsad KC Abahani Limited Dhaka Bangladesh Saifur Rahman Moni 6
2005–06 Mohammedan SC Abahani Limited Dhaka None

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Bangladesh – List of Champions". RSSSF. Retrieved 20 August 2011.
  2. ^ Reporter, Sports (January 3, 2000). "Dhaka teams bag the elite". The Daily Star.
  3. ^ "The Daily Star Web Edition Vol. 5 Num 668". archive.thedailystar.net.
  4. ^ "The Daily Star Web Edition Vol. 5 Num 893". archive.thedailystar.net.
  5. ^ "Booters demand Dhaka League". The Daily Star. 6 November 2007. Retrieved 24 June 2021.
  6. ^ Rahman, Anisur (July 6, 2018). "Bangladesh football: then and now". The Daily Star.
  7. ^ "Nitol-Tata steps up again". Dhaka Tribune. 2014-02-03. Retrieved 2019-05-27.
  8. ^ Reporter, Sports (February 4, 2014). "Nitol Tata to sponsor BPL". The Daily Star.
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