Bharat FC was an Indian professional football team based in Pune, Maharashtra that competed in the I-League. The team was founded on 26 August 2014 by Kalyani Group as a direct-entry team into the I-League, making them the second direct-entry side in league history after Bengaluru FC.[1] The name of the team, as well as their home stadium, the Balewadi Sports Complex, were officially announced on 23 November 2014.[4] But after a disappointing season in I-league the franchise withdrew from 2015–16 season of the tournament.[5]
History
In 2013, in a bid to increase the popularity of the I-League – India's top football league – the All India Football Federation approved the addition of teams into the league via bidding for a direct-entry slot.[6] The first two teams to be allowed into the I-League via direct-entry were Bengaluru FC and Mumbai Tigers but only Bengaluru FC played in the 2013–14 season.[7] Despite the failure of Mumbai Tigers, Bengaluru FC proved to be an amazing success for the I-League as the Bangalore club managed to bring in full-houses to all their matches as well as even win the league in their very first season.[8] This thus made the AIFF announce that they would be accepting bids for new direct-entry teams for the 2014–15 season.[9] On 26 August 2014, after the AIFF reviewed the bidders, they announced that Kalyani Group had won the right to start a direct-entry club for the 2014–15 season.[1]
After winning the bid for the team, in November 2014, Kalyani Group signed their first ever head coach for the football team in former Wolverhampton Wanderers player Stuart Watkiss.[10] Kalyani Group then signed their first ever player on 10 November 2014 when New Zealand international Kris Bright signed for the club.[11] After making their first signings, the Kalyani Group officially announced the name of the club on 23 November 2014 as Bharat FC.[4]
Colours and kits
During the clubs first ever kit launch event on 2 January 2015, it was announced that the clubs colours would be based on the teams motto, "Together, Forever and Triumphant", which are blue, red, and white.[12] The home kit was coloured in dark blue which stands for the "Peoples Football" while the away kit is predominantly red.[12] The clubs third kit was coloured completely white with the colours blue and red running horizontally across the shirt. The red denotes "passion and vitality" while blue stands for "truth and loyalty".[12]
When Bharat FC's name was announced, the Balewadi Sports Complex was also announced as the first ever stadium to be used by the club.[4] The stadium has a capacity of 12,000.[2] The team has stated their intention to eventually construct their own football stadium with Manjri being the initial looked at location for the stadium.[13]
Currently, the team has their training group located in Manjri.[13]
Final squad
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Stuart Watkiss
Stanley Rozario
Zoran Lemajić
