Jamshedpur Football Club is an Indian professional football club based in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand. The club has competed as a member of the Indian Super League since the 2017–18 season. The club was established on 12 June 2017, when Tata Steel won the bidding rights for one of two expansion spots in the Indian Super League.
On 25 May 2017, it was announced that bidding for new teams had ended and that the league's appointed external validator would look over the bids.[3] Two weeks later, on 12 June, it was officially announced that Bengaluru FC (for Bengaluru) and Tata Steel (for Jamshedpur) had won the bids for the new teams.[4]
After winning the expansion bid to enter the Indian Super League, Tata announced on 14 July 2017 that the inaugural head coach for the Jamshedpur franchise would be Steve Coppell.[5] Coppell, the previous ISL season, had led the Kerala Blasters to the league final.[6] Nine days later, on 23 July, before the 2017–18 ISL Players Draft, the team's official name and logo were revealed. The club was officially named Jamshedpur FC.[7] During the players draft, due to being a brand new club, Jamshedpur FC had the very first pick. India international Anas Edathodika was the first draft pick selected by the club and thus the first player in Jamshedpur history.[8]
Inaugural season
Jamshedpur began play in November 2017. The team played their first ever match on 18 November 2017 against NorthEast United at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium. Despite being disadvantaged through defender André Bikey being sent off, Jamshedpur managed to hold on for a 0–0 draw.[9] After another goalless draw in their next match, Jamshedpur played their first official home match on 1 December against the reigning champions ATK. Over 23,000 fans came to support the side at the JRD Tata Sports Complex but once again, the team failed to do more than draw 0–0.[10] Finally, in their fourth match, away at Delhi Dynamos, Jamshedpur managed to earn their first victory. The club won 1–0 with Izu Azuka becoming the first ever Jamshedpur goal scorer.[11]
By the halfway point of the season, Jamshedpur had only managed two victories on the season including four draws and three defeats. The meant the team was in seventh place, six points off the playoff spots.[12] Fortunes changed for Jamshedpur during the second half of the season and on 4 March 2018, the club played their final match of the Super League season at home against Goa with Jamshedpur needing a victory in order to qualify for the finals.[13] Unfortunately, despite having home advantage, Jamshedpur fell 3–0 and thus failed to qualify for the finals in their first season.[14]
In 2017, Jamshedpur signed a deal with Nivia Sports as their official kit sponsors from the 2017–18 season.Nivia Sports is the official kit sponsor of Jamshedpur FC.
Support
The club has quickly built a reputation for one of the most vocal fan-bases in India. The fans are officially known as The Red Miners when playing in the JRD Tata Sports Complex, and the travelling fans as the Red Army (or the Red Fans). The players and the coach have often acknowledged the fans' support in the success by calling them The 12th Man.
Players
Current Squad
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
César Ferrando
Sunil Bhaskaran
Haiti
Cameroon
Nigeria
Matheus Gonçalves[21]
England
