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Bengaluru FC

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Bengaluru FC
File:Bengaluru FC Logo.svg
Full nameBengaluru Football Club
Nickname(s)The Blues
Founded20 July 2013[1]
GroundSree Kanteerava Stadium,
Bangalore, Karnataka
Capacity40,000
OwnerJSW Group
Managing DirectorSajjan Jindal
Head CoachAshley Westwood
LeagueI-League
2013–14I-League, 1st
WebsiteClub website
Current season

Bengaluru Football Club is an Indian professional football club based in Bangalore, Karnataka. The club participates in the I-League, India's top-tier football league. It is one of the two direct-entry clubs in the I-League (along with the Mumbai Tigers) who were accepted automatically into the league through payment instead of being promoted from the I-League 2nd Division.[1] The team is currently owned by Mumbai-based company, JSW Group and its managing director is Sajjan Jindal.[1]

History

Inception

Around the beginning of January 2013, word managed to get out that the Mumbai Tigers (then Dodsal FC) had failed to register on time for the upcoming 2013 I-League 2nd Division campaign and that they could instead get direct-entry into the I-League, India's top-tier football league, through a cash payment to the All India Football Federation, the main football association for the sport in India, and a promise to create a stadium within Mumbai, Maharashtra by 2017.[2] Later that month on 12 January it was announced that the All India Football Federation had called for an executive meeting on the 15th to discuss the proposal of handing select companies direct-spots into the 2013–14 I-League.[3] This news came following the uncertainly over the participation of institutional clubs, Air India FC and ONGC and the temporarily banned side Mohun Bagan for the 2013–14 season.[3]

On 15 January 2013 it was officially announced that during the AIFF meeting that, in an effort to make the league more "pan-Indian", the federation would be accepting bids from corporate groups for two new direct-entry clubs for the 2013–14 season.[4] The bidding companies would have to guarantee a team that would play outside both Kolkata and Goa and that would also commit to building-up new infrastructure.[4] The winning bids would be announced in March and they will also be replacements for the institutional clubs Air India and ONGC.[4]

On 8 March 2013 it was reported that the JSW Group were interested in bidding for an automatic place in the I-League after contemplating whether to create one in the past in Bangalore.[5] It was also reported that AR Khaleel, a senior official with the AIFF, had suggested that Bangalore could be a host venue for the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup, if India wins the hosting rights, and that the corporate team could help build up infrastructure and create a world-class stadium by 2017 in the city.[5] On 15 May 2013 it was announced that the All India Football Federation had officially received three-bids for the two direct-entry spots.[6] The bids came from JSW Group, Dodsal Group, and a consortium from Kerala.[6]

Finally, on 28 May 2013, it was officially announced that JSW Group had won the franchise rights to the direct-club in Bangalore and that it would be spearheaded by the companies sports branch, JSW Sports.[7] The team would play all home games in Bangalore while setting up a youth academy there. They would also try to make better football infrastructure for the city.[7] Then on 20 July 2013, almost two months after winning the bid for a team, JSW launched the team officially as Bengaluru Football Club by throwing a mega-electric event at the Bangalore Football Stadium, which would be announced as the home for Bengaluru FC during the season.[1] Along with the club name and stadium, the club crest and colours were also unveiled as well as the team's home kit for the season and the squad.[1]

Ashley Westwood Era (2013–)

As soon as JSW won the rights to a direct-entry side they went straight into the market for players with one of their first being Thoi Singh who last played for Mumbai Tigers in the I-League 2nd Division.[8] Then on 2 July 2013 it was announced that JSW had signed former Manchester United youth player and former Blackburn Rovers assistant manager Ashley Westwood as the clubs very first head coach ever.[9] The club then made more headlines on 16 July 2013 when it was announced that the side had completed the signings of former Premier League defender John Johnson and former Football League Two defender Curtis Osano as two of its foreign players.[10] Three days later it was confirmed that JSW had signed current India national football team captain and former Major League Soccer player Sunil Chhetri after he was released from Sporting Portugal B, thus further strengthening the side.[11]

Bengaluru then played their first ever match in a friendly against the India national football team on 25 August 2013 in the country's preparation for the 2013 SAFF Championship in which Bengaluru drew 1–1 with Johnny Menyongar scoring the first goal of the match before India equalized through Lenny Rodrigues.[12] The club then played their first ever official match in the I-League on 22 September 2013 against Mohun Bagan A.C. at the Bangalore Football Stadium.[13] After a scoreless first-half Bengaluru scored their first ever official goal in the 49th minute to take the lead through Sean Rooney.[13] However, in injury-time, Mohun Bagan managed to draw a goal back through Chinadorai Sabeeth and thus the match ended in a 1–1 stalemate.[13] The club then won their first ever match in the I-League in their very next match against Rangdajied United F.C. at the Bangalore Football Stadium on 29 September 2013 in which goals from John Johnson, Sean Rooney, and Sunil Chhetri saw the team win the match 3–0 in front of their home fans.[14]

Bengaluru FC then played their very first away match ever on 26 October 2013 against East Bengal F.C. at the Kalyani Stadium.[15] Unfortunately that match would also turn out to be the very first match that Bengaluru FC would lose in, after they fell 2–0 from a goal by James Moga and an own-goal from Robin Singh.[15] The club would then eventually win their first away match in club history on 26 November 2013 against Salgaocar F.C. at the Duler Stadium in Mapusa, Goa.[16] Goals from Johnny Menyongar and Beikhokhei Beingaichho lead Bengaluru FC to a historic 2–1 victory.[16]

File:Bengaluru FC Victory Parade 2013-14.jpg
Victory parade

Then, in January 2014, the club participated in their first ever senior domestic cup tournament when they took part in the 2013–14 Indian Federation Cup.[17] The team was placed in Group B along with East Bengal, Rangdajied United, and Sporting Goa. The clubs first match of the tournament occurred on 15 January 2014 against Sporting Goa at the Malappuram District Sports Complex Stadium in which the team won the match by a scoreline of 5–3.[18] However, that would turn out to be Bengaluru FC's only victory of the tournament as they would go on to draw and lose their next matches, thus knocking them out.[19]

On 21 April 2014, the club beat Dempo FC 4–2 in a thrilling encounter to claim the I-League and also the club's first trophy.[20]

Colours and badge

Unveiled during the 21 July JSW launch, the crest features the Bangalore Palace coloured in white in order to symbolize "victory" from when the Wodeyars won the palace back.[21] The pride, resilience, and pride of the people of Bangalore is represented by a picture of a blue Gandaberunda - a mythical two headed bird that is said to possess magical might - in the middle of the crest.[21] The use of the Gandaberunda is from the coat of arms for the state of Karnataka and is the symbol of the state.[21]


Kit manufacturers and shirt sponsors

Period Kit manufacturer Shirt sponsor
2013—2014 nike JSW
2014—present Puma

In July 2014, Bengaluru signed a deal with Puma as their official kit sponsors from the 2014–15 season.[22]

Stadium

Bengaluru FC plays all its matches at the Bangalore Football Stadium which is located at the heart of the city. The West stand is the largest and can accommodate maximum number of people. The West stand also houses the VIP boxes during I-League and other major matches. During the launch of the club it was announced that the team would play at the Bangalore Football Stadium for the 2013–14 I-League season.[1] The Bangalore Football Stadium is a 15,000 capacity football stadium which uses astroturf.[23] For the 2014–15 season the club will play their matches at the 40,000 capacity Sree Kanteerava Stadium[24]

Players

Sunil Chhetri, the first captain of Bengaluru FC.
As of 16 February 2014.[25]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK India IND Pawan Kumar
2 DF India IND Nanjangud Shivananju Manju
3 DF India IND Vishal Kumar
4 DF Kenya KEN Curtis Osano
5 MF India IND Gurtej Singh
6 DF England ENG John Johnson
7 FW Australia AUS Sean Rooney
8 MF India IND Malemngamba Meetei
9 FW India IND Robin Singh
10 MF England ENG Josh Walker MP
11 FW India IND Sunil Chhetri (captain)
12 MF India IND Thoi Singh
13 DF India IND Rino Anto
14 MF India IND Sampath Kuttimani
15 MF India IND Darren Caldeira
17 FW India IND Karan Sawhney
18 MF India IND Beikhokhei Beingaichho
No. Pos. Nation Player
19 MF India IND Siam Hanghal
20 DF India IND Keegan Pereira
22 GK India IND Bruno Colaço
23 DF India IND Lalrozama Fanai
25 MF India IND Niroshan Mani
26 DF India IND Thomas Lalengkima
27 MF India IND Amoes
28 MF India IND Don Bosco Andrew
29 GK India IND Soram Anganba
30 GK India IND Ricardo Cardozo
31 MF India IND C.K. Vineeth
— DF India IND Lalchhuan Mawia [26]
— MF India IND Randhan Meitei
— MF India IND Eugeneson Lyngdoh [26]
— FW India IND Shankar Sampingiraj
— FW India IND Udanta Singh [26]

MP: The player is registered as the Marquee player.

Current technical staff

Ashley Westwood, the very first head coach of Bengaluru FC.
As of January 2014. [27]
Position Name
Head Coach England Ashley Westwood
Assistant Coach Scotland Pradyum Reddy
Goalkeeping Coach Turkey Ali Uzunhasanoglu
Performance Coach England Malcolm Purchase
Head of Youth Development India Richard Hood

Head Coach's Record

As of 28 April 2014
Name Nationality From To P W D L GF GA Win%
Ashley Westwood  England 2 July 2013 Present 27 15 6 6 49 33 055.56


Honours

Winners (1): 2013–14

See also

Footnotes

  1. ^ a b c d e f "JSW Sports launches Bengaluru FC". I-League. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  2. ^ "Dodsal FC might get a direct entry in next year's I-League". Kick Off India. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  3. ^ a b Mergulhao, Marcus. "AIFF chief proposes direct entry for teams in I-League". Times of India. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  4. ^ a b c "AIFF lifts ban on Mohun Bagan, let off with Rs 2 crore fine". Times of India. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  5. ^ a b Babu Cyriac, Biju. "I-League: Jindal Group back in talks". Times of India. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  6. ^ a b "JSW, two others bid for new I-League clubs". Business Standard. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  7. ^ a b Mazumdar, Rakhi. "JSW bags franchisee rights for Bangalore team in I-league, group forays into football". Economic Times. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  8. ^ "Indian Football Transfer Gossip: Thoi Singh to shift his base from Mumbai Tigers to JSW Bangalore, Malswamtulunga set to join hands with East Bengal". Kick Off India. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  9. ^ "Ashley Westwood appointed JSW coach for upcoming I-League season". NDTV Sports. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  10. ^ "JSW add Premier League touch to squad". I-League. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
  11. ^ "India captain Sunil Chhetri signs for I-League new entrants JSW". NDTV Sports. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
  12. ^ "Bengaluru FC vs Indian national team". bengalurufc.com.
  13. ^ a b c "Bengaluru FC hold Mohun Bagan to 1-1 draw". IBN Live. Retrieved 4 October 2013.
  14. ^ "Bengaluru FC eases past Rangdajied United". The Hindu. Retrieved 4 October 2013.
  15. ^ a b "East Bengal end Bengaluru's unbeaten run in I-League". NDTV Sports. Retrieved 26 October 2013.
  16. ^ a b "Bengaluru FC move to second spot in I-League". Times of India. Retrieved 29 November 2013.
  17. ^ "Federation Cup 2013-14 to kickoff on Jan 14 with 16 teams". Zee News. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
  18. ^ "Federation Cup: Bengaluru FC register 5-3 win over Sporting Clube de Goa". NDTV Sport. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  19. ^ "Federation Cup: East Bengal knock out Bengaluru FC, Mohun Bagan to play Churchill". NDTV Sports. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  20. ^ "Bengaluru FC edge past Dempo SC 4-2 to win maiden I-League title". CNN-IBN. Retrieved 22 April 2014.
  21. ^ a b c "The club crest decoded: Everything BFC stands for". Bengaluru FC (Facebook). Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  22. ^ "Puma is the official kit sponsor of Bengaluru FC". goal.com. 17 July 2014. Retrieved 23 July 2014. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  23. ^ Ameerudheen, TA. "Turf inauguration put off in Bangalore football stadium". Times of India. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  24. ^ http://www.one.in/indianexpress-bangalore/move-on-stadium-may-hit-football-future-1342793.html
  25. ^ "Team and Staff". Bengaluru FC. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  26. ^ a b c "BFC makes three new signings". 15 July 2014.
  27. ^ http://arunfoot.blogspot.in/2014/01/bengaluru-fc-add-experienced-foreign.html
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