Dhaka derby


The Dhaka Derby is a football [List of association association football|football club rivalries in Asia and Oceania|rivalry] between the Dhaka teams of Abahani and Mohammedan; although the rivalry was bigger in the past, it is still considered to be the biggest game in Bangladesh's domestic football scene.
Mohammedan was founded in 1936, and Abahani in 1972. Bangladesh football's popularity grew based on these two Dhaka clubs. The two clubs have divided the country's fans into two camps in a fierce rivalry of more than 50 years. The two clubs meet several times a year in competitions like the Federation Cup, Bangladesh Premier League, Independence Cup.

History

1970s–1990s

The two sides first met in 1973 in Dhaka First Division League. During that match, Abahani player Amalesh Sen scored the first goal in the history of Dhaka derby. Salahuddin scored the second goal for Abahani and the Abahani won that match by 2–0 and caused an upset over the mighty Black and Whites.
In 1978, Bangladesh participated in Asian Games for the first time. Monwar Hossain Nannu, being the senior most player in the squad, was originally nominated as the captain for the Bangkok event. But, then the Federation changed their decision and goalkeeper Shahidur Rahman Shantoo from MSC was appointed the new captain. 7 Abahani players including Nannu withdrew from the team in protest.
The much depleted Bangladesh team struggled in the tournament losing 1–0 to Malaysia and 3–0 to India. Following this incident, the federation generally tried to pick national team captain outside the big two Dhaka teams for the next few years.
The 1980s was the golden era of club football in Dhaka. Any match involving Mohammedan or Abahani would draw huge crowd at the Dhaka stadium. The rivalry between the two rivals was at its peak in this era.
Before the match flags of Abahani and Mohamedan were observed in rooftops of Dhaka residents. Abahani won a hat-trick of titles in 1983, 1984 & 1985 and Mohammedan made a record of winning an unbeaten hat-trick of titles in 1986, 1987 & 1988-89. The rivalry reached its peak as fans always wanted their favorite team to win and they also contested in foreign tournaments and were the best sides.

2000s–2010

Since the start of the Bangladesh Premier League in 2007, the rivalry has lost majority of its past fame.

Head-to-head

Statistics

Following statistics are from matches since 2007 B.League.

Matches

Following is the list of matches since 2007 B.League.
#SeasonDateCompetitionStadiumHome TeamResultAway TeamReport
1200716 March 2007Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaMohammedan0–1Abahani
2200716 June 2007Bangladesh Premier LeagueKamalpur StadiumAbahani0–0Mohammedan
32008–091 September 2008Federation CupNational Stadium, DhakaAbahani1–1Mohammedan
42008–0924 November 2008Bangladesh Premier LeagueKamalpur StadiumAbahani2–2Mohammedan
52008–0924 January 2009Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaMohammedan1–2Abahani
62009–1019 March 2010Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaMohammedan0–0Abahani
72009–102 June 2010Bangladesh Premier LeagueKamalpur StadiumAbahani1–2Mohammedan
82010–1113 March 2011Bangladesh Premier LeagueKamalpur StadiumAbahani1–0Mohammedan
92010–1124 June 2011Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaMohammedan0–0Abahani
10201217 February 2012Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaAbahani1–1Mohammedan
11201222 May 2012Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaMohammedan2–0Abahani
122012–1328 December 2012Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaAbahani2–0Mohammedan
132012–137 April 2013Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaMohammedan1–1Abahani
142013–1419 January 2014Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaMohammedan0–1Abahani
152013–144 May 2014Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaAbahani0–1Mohammedan
162013–1430 June 2014Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaMohammedan1–1Abahani
172014–1520 May 2015Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaAbahani0–1Mohammedan
182014–1516 August 2015Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaMohammedan0–0Abahani
19201621 September 2016Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaMohammedan0–3Abahani
2020166 December 2016Bangladesh Premier LeagueGopalganj StadiumAbahani2–1Mohammedan
212017–187 August 2017Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaAbahani1–0Mohammedan
222017–1822 November 2017Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaMohammedan0–2Abahani
232018–1928 February 2019Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaAbahani3–0Mohammedan
242018–1916 July 2019Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaMohammedan4–0Abahani
252019–204 March 2020Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaAbahani4–0Mohammedan
262019–2025 June 2020Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaMohammedanN/AAbahani
272020–214 March 2020Federation CupNational Stadium, DhakaAbahani3–0Mohammedan
282020–2128 January 2021Bangladesh Premier LeagueComilla StadiumMohammedan2–2Abahani
292020–2127 June 2021Bangladesh Premier LeagueNational Stadium, DhakaAbahani1–1Mohammedan
302021–2223 February 2022Bangladesh Premier LeagueSylhet District StadiumAbahani1–0Mohammedan
312021–2222 June 2022Bangladesh Premier LeagueComilla StadiumMohammedan2–4Abahani
322022–2327 January 2023Bangladesh Premier LeagueComilla StadiumAbahani2–0Mohammedan
332022–2326 May 2022Bangladesh Premier LeagueComilla StadiumMohammedan1–1Abahani
342022–2330 May 2022Federation CupComilla StadiumMohammedan4–4Abahani
352023–2413 February 2024Federation CupSheikh Fazlul Haque Mani StadiumAbahani1–2Mohammedan
362023–2423 February 2024Bangladesh Premier LeagueComilla StadiumAbahani2–2Mohammedan
372023–2429 May 2024Bangladesh Premier LeagueSheikh Fazlul Haque Mani StadiumAbahani1-Mohammedan

Statistics

All players in bold are still active in the derby.

Hat-tricks

PlayerForAgainstResultDate
sortname|Souleymane|Diabate

Records

Friendly matches are not included in the following records unless otherwise noted.
  • Widest winning margin: 4 goals
  • *Mohammedan 4–0 Abahani
  • *Abahani 4–0 Mohammedan
  • Highest scoring match: 8 goals
  • *Mohammedan 4–4 Abahani

Notable matches

Abahani 2–0 Mohammedan
This was the first ever Dhaka derby played in Dhaka First Division League. Amalesh Sen and Salahuddin scored the first and second goals for Abahani, defeating Mohammedan
2–0.
  • Abahani 1-1 Mohammedan
In 1982, the Dhaka Derby between Abahani and Mohammedan ended in a 1–1 draw, but it became one of the most infamous matches in our football history. Mohammedan scored first, and when Abahani equalized, the stadium erupted into chaos. Fans stormed the pitch, riots broke out, and even players were caught in the unrest. That day showed us not only the fierce rivalry between these two giants but also the passion, intensity, and sometimes danger that the Dhaka Derby carried in its golden era.
  • Mohammedan 4-3 Abahani
In a dramatic league clash, Mohammedan were trailing by two goals before Imtiaz Ahmed Nakib pulled off a stunning hat-trick to lead a remarkable comeback, sealing a 4–3 win. The game ended with Motiur Rahman Munna scoring in the dying moments, cementing its place as one of the most thrilling derbies ever. Nakib’s performance remains iconic in derby folklore. Abahani 0–0 Mohammedan
This was the first ever derby match in the Bangladesh Premier League. The match took place in Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka on 16 June 2007, which ended in a 0–0 draw.Mohammedan 1-0 Abahani
The final match of Bangladesh Super Cup first edition. After the BDR uprising in February 2008, security was tight for the final held in March. Yet there was no shortage of interest among the audience. For the final match, more spectators stayed outside the stadium than on the field. A 21st minute goal by Nigerian midfielder John Godwin gave Mohammedan the Citycell Super Cup title with a solitary goal victory.
  • Abahani 4-0 Mohammedan
In a mirror to the previous derby, Abahani answered back the following season with a commanding 4–0 win over Mohammedan.
  • Mohammedan 4–4 Abahani
This was the final of 2022–23 Federation Cup, it ended 3–3 in the normal time, Diabate scored hat-trick for Mohammedan while Fahim, Colindres and Ogbugh scored for Abahani respectively. In additional time, Diabate scored his 4th goal in the 105th minute to give Mohammedan the lead. Mia scored in 118th minute equalizer to take the match into penalty shoot-out, where Mohammedan won 4–2 after Augusto and Colindres failed to convert their spot-kicks after Emon failed to score his penalty for Mohammedan.

Honours

Major honours
This following table includes only those titles recognised and organised by the BFF and AFC.
CompetitionMohammedanAbahani
First Division/Premier Division League1911
Federation Cup1112
Super Cup21
Bangladesh Premier Football League16
Independence Cup32
National Football League21
Liberation Cup01
DMFA Cup31
BTC Club Cup01
Ma-Moni Gold cup10
Total4136