The Sri Lanka national football team reached here yesterday amid huge enthusiasm from the spectators, who are gearing up to watch the FIFA friendly match between hosts Bangladesh and Sri Lanka on Wednesday at the new-look Sheikh Kamal Stadium in Nilphamari.

Sri Lanka were given a warm reception as the district's administration, local government and district sports association officials received them upon their arrival at the Saidpur Airport before school and college going students greeted them with flowers.

Sri Lana got their accommodations at the North View Hotel in Rangpur, where they opted to rest instead of undertaking a training session.

Fans queue outside a bank to buy tickets for what could be the first big match experience for the people of the northern district. Photo: STAR

The spectators in Nilphamari endured a restless day on Sunday as they collected tickets for the FIFA friendly, which was arranged as a part of both teams' preparations for the SAFF Championship. Enthusiastic individuals had to queue up in long lines and wait for hours to get their tickets from different bank branches in the small town.

Meanwhile, the Sheikh Kamal Stadium took on a new look, its adjacent areas are now adorned with colourful flags and banners which sparked further enthusiasm among the people. The renovation works inside the stadium saw the facility's seating capacity rise from 10,000 to 20,000 and approximately 13 thousand tickets, priced from Tk 100 to 1000, were already sold out Sunday while the remaining 7000 tickets will be available for purchase on the game day from counters inside the stadium. There will also be separate arrangements made for female spectators, informed District Sports Association general secretary and former national footballer Arif Hossian Moon.