In Bangladesh sports are popular and widespread. Cricket is the most popular sport in Bangladesh, with the national team being the top 9th team in the world. Football is the second most popular sport in Bangladesh. Kabaddi is the national sport in Bangladesh.

Cricket: Cricket is the most popular sport in Bangladesh. Bangladesh received its Test status from the International Cricket Council in 2000. Official logo of the Bangladesh national cricket team is the Royal Bengal Tiger, by which they are often referred at media.

The cricketing culture is not a new phenomenon in Bangladesh. Similar to other Indian sub continental countries, the game itself was first introduced to the Ganges-Brahmaputra delta region by the British rulers nearly two centuries ago. Following the liberation war, which ended by Bangladesh gaining independence in 1971, cricket continued to grow in popularity. There is a strong domestic league which on many occasions also saw players from foreign countries gracing the cricket fields of Bangladesh.

Often criticized for their poor performances, but have beaten all the test playing nations once or twice in ODI matches. Bangladesh most recently enjoyed a good run of form, defeating New Zealand 4–0 in a 5 match ODI series held in Mirpur, Dhaka. Bangladesh was one of the hosts of the 2011 Cricket World Cup. They currently hold 9th spot in the ODI and Test ICC World Rankings.

In 2012, Bangladesh hosted the Asia Cup. Pakistan, India, Sri-Lanka, and Bangladesh participated in the tournament. Bangladesh played fantastically throughout the tournament, and for the first time, they played the finals of the Asia Cup. Though they ended as the runners-up, they won the hearts of many people around the world.

Football: After cricket, Football is the second most popular sport in Bangladesh. Bangladesh is currently ranked 134th in the FIFA rankings. Bangladesh became the 2003 South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) champion. SAFF includes South Asian countries and other countries from Asia. The Bangladesh national football team is controlled by the national governing body, the Bangladesh Football Federation, which is a member of FIFA and AFC. The side has yet to qualify for a FIFA World Cup tournament. They were eliminated in the first round of their only Asian Cup appearance to date in 1980. As is the case elsewhere on the subcontinent, the national football team stands somewhat in the shadow of the country’s test cricket team. The team was founded in 1972, and joined FIFA in 1974.

Apart from wins over Indonesia and Thailand in their first ever FIFA World Cup qualification in 1986, Bangladesh has struggled to impose itself. At the regional level, they have also remained in the second echelon while in Asia; the team is constantly trying to avoid being the wooden spoon of their group.

Football in Bangladesh has a huge following which was exemplified when the national team made history in their victory at the South Asian Football Federation Cup in 2003. The South Asia side won the final via penalties over Maldives before 50,000 home supporters.

Kabaddi: Kabaddi is the national sport in Bangladesh. Two teams of seven players occupy opposite halves of a field of 12.5m x 10m divided by a line into two halves. The teams take turns sending a “raider” across to the opposite team’s half, where the goal is to tag or wrestle members of the opposite team before returning to the home half. Tagged members are “out” and are sent off the field. The raider must not take a breath during the raid, and must prove it by constantly chanting during the raid. Meanwhile, the defenders must form a chain, for example by linking hands; if the chain is broken, a member of the defending team is sent off. The goal of the defenders is to stop the raider from returning to the home side before taking a breath.

In 1980, Bangladesh became the runners-up in the first Asian Kabaddi Championship and India emerged as the champion. Bangladesh became runners-up again in the next Asian Kabaddi Championship held in 1985 at Jaipur, India. The Bangladesh national kabaddi team won the bronze medal at the 2006 Asian Games.

Shooting: Bangladesh has won all its medals in shooting at the Commonwealth Games, and South Asian Games. Their key shooter is Asif Hossain Khan, who won a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games, representing Bangladesh at the games.

Sports organization: The Sports organization in Bangladesh has undergone many changes in different periods before and after its independence. The Bangladesh Sports Control Board was established in 1972. There are 29 registered federations under this board. These include federations for popular sports such as cricket, football, hockey, tennis, badminton, volleyball, handball, chess, and carom, as well as for wrestling, weightlifting, squash, billiards, and snooker, which are less popular in Bangladesh. Other recognised sports organizations in the country are the district and divisional sports organizations, university sports organizations, and the sports bodies of the armed forces, police and ansar, as well as of public sector corporations, boards and departments such as Bangladesh Biman, BJMC, BTMC, PWD, and Bangladesh Railway.