HAKA, Dec 26, 2025 (BSS)- The final phase of the 'Festival of Youth 2025 National Kabaddi (Men's and Women's) Championship' has begun at the Shaheed Captain M. Mansur Ali National Handball Stadium in the capital today (Friday).

National Sports Council (NSC) Director (Sports) Mohammad Aminul Ehsan formally inaugurated the meet as the chief guest.
Bangladesh Kabaddi Federation (BKF) general secretary SM Newaz Sohag, and Joint Secretary Abdul Haque, along with other officials of the federation, were also present during the opening ceremony. 

Speaking as the chief guest, NSC Director (sports) Mohammad Aminul Ehsan expressed optimism about the country's kabaddi, saying that "The national game kabaddi has the most potential. We won bronze in the last Women's World Cup... but we want to be number one in the world in both the men's and women's categories ... maybe from this national championship we will get world-class players of the future ... we'll provide all necessary cooperation on behalf of the NSC to the federation."

The first phase of the championship, which is being held in two phases, has started with the district level games today. The best men's and women's teams from the eight zones of the zonal level are participating in the meet. 

In the opening match of the men's division, Moulvibazar District got off to a good start by defeating Madaripur by 46-34 points while in the women's division, Jhenaidah defeated Barisal by 32-26 points.

The finals of the district championship (men and women) will be held on Sunday (Dec 28). After that, in the second phase, the top four teams from the district Championship along with the services teams will compete with the in the main National Championship. The tournament will conclude with the final match slate for December 31.