Dhaka League is the premier regional football league in Bangladesh

Bangladesh

Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...

 played by clubs in Dhaka

Dhaka

Dhaka is the capital of Bangladesh and the principal city of Dhaka Division. Dhaka is a megacity and one of the major cities of South Asia. Located on the banks of the Buriganga River, Dhaka, along with its metropolitan area, had a population of over 15 million in 2010, making it the largest city...

. Until 2000, it was the top-tier league of the country.

History

First in 1948, a year after the independence of Pakistan

Pakistan

Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...

 and India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

 the Dhaka League became the center of attraction for the people of Dhaka, which was then in East Pakistan

East Pakistan

East Pakistan was a provincial state of Pakistan established in 14 August 1947. The provincial state existed until its declaration of independence on 26 March 1971 as the independent nation of Bangladesh. Pakistan recognized the new nation on 16 December 1971. East Pakistan was created from Bengal...

 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

Pakistan national football team

The Pakistan national football team is controlled by the Pakistan Football Federation and is a member of the Asian Football Confederation . The team has not yet qualified for either the FIFA World Cup or Asian Cup championships. Twice they have finished third in the South Asian Football Federation...

.

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

Mohammedan Sporting Club (Dhaka)

Mohammedan Sporting Club is a major sporting club in Bangladesh. It is mainly located in Dhaka, Bangladesh, though there are many local branches throughout the country.-History:...

, Muktijoddha Sangsad KS

Muktijoddha Sangsad KS

Muktijoddha Sangsad KS is a football club in Bangladesh. It is based in Dhaka, Bangladesh.-Performance in AFC competitions:* Asian Club Championship: 2 appearances-External links:* *...

, Brothers Union

Brothers Union

Brothers Union is a football club in Bangladesh. It is based in Dhaka, Bangladesh.-Achievements:*National Championship: 1*Premier Division League: 2*Bangladesh Federation Cup: 3-Performance in AFC competitions:...

 and Sheikh Russell KC

Sheikh Russel KC

Sheikh Russel KC is a football team from Dhaka, Bangladesh playing in the Bangladesh Professional Football League.- Current Squad :...

 which are the "big fives" in the Bangladesh League today.

Dhaka League 2010 teams

Only the new Senior Division league (Bashundhara Senior Division Football League for sponsorship reasons) was held in 2010.

Super League clubs

• Fakirerpool Young Men's Club
• Victoria SC
• Jatrabari KC
• Wari Club
• Uttar Baridhara
• T&T Club Motijheel

Relegation League clubs

• Sunrise SC
• Dhaka Wanderers
• Badda Jagarani
• Mohakhali Ekadosh
• Agrani Bank
• Purbachal Parishad

N.B.Among the entrants of the Bangladesh League, only Arambagh

Arambagh KS

Arambagh Krira Sangha is a sports club of Bangladesh. It is based in Arambagh, Dhaka.Arambag Club was established in Dhaka in 1958. It was at first a football club, but later became active in other games like handball, basketball and volleyball. The club has had continued success in different...

 enters the Dhaka League (clubs are forced to use separate teams for the two competitions).

Previous winners

• 1948: Victoria SC
• 1949: East Pakistan Gymkhana
• 1950: Dhaka Wanderers
• 1951: Dhaka Wanderers
• 1952: Bengal Government Press
• 1953: Dhaka Wanderers
• 1954: Dhaka Wanderers
• 1955: Dhaka Wanderers
• 1956: Dhaka Wanderers
• 1957: Mohammedan Sporting Club
• 1958: Azad Sporting

• 1959: Mohammedan Sporting Club
• 1960: Dhaka Wanderers
• 1961: Mohammedan Sporting Club
• 1962: Victoria SC
• 1963: Mohammedan Sporting Club
• 1964: Victoria SC
• 1965: Mohammedan Sporting Club
• 1966: Mohammedan Sporting Club
• 1967: East Pakistan IDC
• 1968: East Pakistan IDC
• 1969: Mohammedan Sporting Club

• 1970: East Pakistan IDC
• 1971: not held
• 1972: not finished
• 1973: Bangladesh JIC (same as EPIDC pre-1971)
• 1974: Abahani Krira Chakra
• 1975: Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club may refer to the following sports teams:*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Kolkata, India*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Dhaka, Bangladesh...
  
  
• 1976: Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club may refer to the following sports teams:*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Kolkata, India*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Dhaka, Bangladesh...
  
  
• 1977: Abahani Krira Chakra
• 1978: Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club may refer to the following sports teams:*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Kolkata, India*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Dhaka, Bangladesh...
  
  
• 1979: BJMC (Bangladesh Jute Mill Corp., same as BJIC and EPIDC)
• 1980: Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club may refer to the following sports teams:*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Kolkata, India*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Dhaka, Bangladesh...
  
  

• 1981: Abahani Krira Chakra
• 1982: Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club may refer to the following sports teams:*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Kolkata, India*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Dhaka, Bangladesh...
  
  
• 1983: Abahani Krira Chakra
• 1984: Abahani Krira Chakra
• 1985: Abahani Krira Chakra
• 1986: Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club may refer to the following sports teams:*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Kolkata, India*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Dhaka, Bangladesh...
  
  
• 1987: Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club may refer to the following sports teams:*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Kolkata, India*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Dhaka, Bangladesh...
  
  
• 1988-89: Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club may refer to the following sports teams:*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Kolkata, India*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Dhaka, Bangladesh...
  
  
• 1989-90: Abahani Ltd.
• 1991-92: Abahani Ltd.

Premier Division League

• 1993: Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club may refer to the following sports teams:*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Kolkata, India*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Dhaka, Bangladesh...
  
  
• 1994: Abahani Ltd.
• 1995: Abahani Ltd.
• 1996: Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club may refer to the following sports teams:*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Kolkata, India*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Dhaka, Bangladesh...
  
  
• 1997-98: Muktijoddha Sangsad KS
  Muktijoddha Sangsad KS
  Muktijoddha Sangsad KS is a football club in Bangladesh. It is based in Dhaka, Bangladesh.-Performance in AFC competitions:* Asian Club Championship: 2 appearances-External links:* *...
  
  
• 1999: Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club may refer to the following sports teams:*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Kolkata, India*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Dhaka, Bangladesh...
  
  
• 2000: Muktijoddha Sangsad KS
  Muktijoddha Sangsad KS
  Muktijoddha Sangsad KS is a football club in Bangladesh. It is based in Dhaka, Bangladesh.-Performance in AFC competitions:* Asian Club Championship: 2 appearances-External links:* *...
  
  
• 2001: Abahani Ltd.
• 2002: Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club
  Mohammedan Sporting Club may refer to the following sports teams:*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Kolkata, India*Mohammedan Sporting Club , sports club in Dhaka, Bangladesh...
  
  
• 2003-04: Brothers Union
  Brothers Union
  Brothers Union is a football club in Bangladesh. It is based in Dhaka, Bangladesh.-Achievements:*National Championship: 1*Premier Division League: 2*Bangladesh Federation Cup: 3-Performance in AFC competitions:...
  
  
• 2005: Brothers Union
  Brothers Union
  Brothers Union is a football club in Bangladesh. It is based in Dhaka, Bangladesh.-Achievements:*National Championship: 1*Premier Division League: 2*Bangladesh Federation Cup: 3-Performance in AFC competitions:...
  
  
• 2006: not played
• 2007-08: Fakirapool Young Men's Club
• 2008-09: not played
• 2010: Fakirapool Young Men's Club

Total Championships

The number of national championships that clubs in Dhaka have attained.

Club	Number of Championships
Mohammedan Sporting Club	19
Abahani Ltd.	11
Dhaka Wanderers	7
Bangladesh IDC [includes East Pakistan IDC]	4
Victoria SC	3
Muktijoddha Sangsad KS Muktijoddha Sangsad KS Muktijoddha Sangsad KS is a football club in Bangladesh. It is based in Dhaka, Bangladesh.-Performance in AFC competitions:* Asian Club Championship: 2 appearances-External links:* *...	2
Brothers Union Brothers Union Brothers Union is a football club in Bangladesh. It is based in Dhaka, Bangladesh.-Achievements:*National Championship: 1*Premier Division League: 2*Bangladesh Federation Cup: 3-Performance in AFC competitions:...	2
Bengal Government Press	1
Bangladesh Jute Mill Corporation	1
East Pakistan Gymkhana	1
Azad	1
Fakirerpool Young Men's Club	1