The 12-nation Bangabandhu Cup' 2024 International Kabaddi Tournament,  named after father of the nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, begins here on Sunday (May 26) at the Shaheed Suhrawardy National Indoor Stadium in Mirpur.

Minister for Youth and Sports Nazmul Hasan Papon MP will inaugurate the nine-day meet Sunday afternoon through an opening  ceremony, to be chaired by President of Bangladesh Kabaddi Federation (BKF) and Inspector General of Police Chowdhury Abdullah Al Mamun.

Twelve countries from the three continents --- Europe, Africa and Asia --will  participate in the 4th edition of the tournament, organised by Bangladesh Kabaddi Federation (BKF).

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Participating countries are:  Poland ,Kenya, Uganda, Japan, South Korea, Iraq, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Nepal, Sri Lanka and hosts Bangladesh.

The trophy unveiling ceremony of the tournament in presence of the captains of 12 participating countries was held  Saturday afternoon at the tournament venue-- Shaheed Suhrawardy National Indoor Stadium in Mirpur.

Last three times champions and hosts Bangladesh will play last two World Cup semifinalists South Korea in one of the four opening day's matches, will kick-off at 4:pm on Sunday.

Nepal will face Malaysia at 5: pm, Japan will meet Iraq at 6 pm while Thailand will encounter Uganda at 7 pm in the other opening day's fixture.

Meanwhile, all the foreign teams  have already arrived in Dhaka to participate in the meet.

Japan, South Korea and Uganda are participating in the tournament for the first time.

The grouping and fixtures of the meet was also finalized in the manager's meeting on Saturday (May 25).

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Groupings: 

Group A -Bangladesh, Nepal, Poland, Indonesia, Malaysia and South Korea.

Group B - Iraq, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Kenya, Uganda and Japan.

On completion of the group matches on June 1, the top two teams from each of the groups will play semifinal on June 2. The tournament will conclude on June 3 with the final match.