Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club (Bengali: à ¦¶à §Âà ¦ à ¦Âà ¦¾à ¦®à ¦¾à ¦² à ¦§à ¦¾à ¦¨à ¦®à ¦¨à §Âà ¦¡à ¦¿ à ¦Âà §Âà ¦²à ¦¾à ¦¬) is a professional football club based in the Dhanmondi area, Dhaka, Bangladesh. The club competes in the Bangladesh Premier League, the top-flight of football in Bangladesh. It was known as Dhanmondi Club before adding the founder's name after turning into a limited company. Sheikh Jamal Club is one of the most successful football clubs in Bangladesh.
Dhanmondi Club took control of its current ground in Dhanmondi in 1962 when it was established. In 2004, the President of Dhanmondi Club and vice-president of Bangladesh Football Federation, Khairul Anwar Piaru was shot dead inside the club premises. In 2007, a court in Dhaka sentenced five people to death for his murder. In 2009, the club was renamed Lt. Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club after Sheikh Jamal, a brother of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. The club's occupation of the playground has been protested by Bangladesh Poribesh Abndolon, Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association, and Institute of Architects, Bangladesh. The club promised to play quality football when called up to the Bangladesh Premier League in 2010âÂÂ11 season directly from the Dhaka Second Division League. The club was crowned champions in their inaugural season in the professional league.
Lt. Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club wanted to use Faridpur Stadium as a their home Stadium for the 2018âÂÂ19 Bangladesh Premier League however they had to play all of their matches at the Bangabandhu National Stadium which is in the Motijheel area in the heart of the city. The stadium had a capacity of close to 55,000 before the work of renovation, making it then the largest stadium of the country. After the renovation, it still remains the largest stadium of the country.
Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club have qualified for continental competition on two occasions.
The first was in 2012 when they qualified for the third-tier AFC President's Cup. However, before the tournament started they withdrew, citing security concern of playing in Pakistan.
Four years later, having won the 2013âÂÂ14 Bangladesh Football Premier League, they qualified for the 2016 AFC Cup. In the qualifying round, they were drawn in Group A along with hosts Alga Bishkek from Kyrgyzstan and Benfica de Macau. They beat Benfica de Macau 4âÂÂ1 in their opening game and then drew with hosts Alga to qualify for the group stage without having to go through the playoff round due to a lack of teams in the east region. They were drawn against Tampines Rovers from Singapore, Ceres from the Philippines and Selangor from Malaysia.