Chennai City FC

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Chennai City Football Club is an Indian professional football club based in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu,[1][2] that last competed in the I-League,[3][4] then one of the top flights of Indian football league system, and Chennai Football League.[5][6] Established in 1946 as Nethaji Sports Club, the club spent its grand majority of history by competing in state leagues and city tournaments until entering the national stage in 2016.[7]

On 11 December 2016, nicknamed the Lions,[8][9] Chennai City was awarded a direct-entry spot into the I-League for 2016–17 season, and became champion in the 2018–19 season.[10]

History

Formation and early years

The club was founded in 1946 as Netaji Sports Club,[11][12] by five friends, SV Kanagasabai, E Vadivelu, TR Govindarajan, PV Chellappa and K Ekambaram.[13] Nethaji Sports Club, affiliated with Tamil Nadu Football Association (TNFA),[14] has appeared in several state competitions including Vittal trophy, TFA Shield and Chennai District Football League.[15][16][17] The club always used to have a young squad with players usually aged 21–22 and the club did come close to national relevance a couple of times, making appearances in the Durand Cup and Federation Cup.

Since the 1990s, Netaji Sports Club participated in Madras Football League, conducted by Chennai Football Association.[18][19] In state tournament, Tamil Nadu State League, they finished as runners-up thrice in 2004, 2005–06 and 2007.[20][21][22]

Present years

On 11 December 2016, the club was accepted as a direct entry club for 2016–17 I-League[23] and became the second club from Tamil Nadu to play in the top division after Indian Bank Recreational Club team in National Football League.[24][25][26] Chennai City FC made it to the Federation Cup by finishing eighth in the I-League table and did it with a game remaining in the league.

Chennai City did decent in their first season at the highest level of domestic league.[27] Their potential was highlighted when they managed to hold off Mohun Bagan AC for a very long time and even got wins against Aizawl FC and East Bengal FC.[28]

In the 2016–17 Indian Federation Cup, they were pitted in Group A against Aizawl, East Bengal and Churchill Brothers. Chennai City lost their first games and were out of contention before playing the last fixture. The team did salvage pride as they won the game against Churchill Brothers emphatically in a 3–1 victory.[29][30][31]

File:Edwin Sydney Vanspaul.png
Edwin Sydney Vanspaul with new club kit in 2019

On 6 February 2019, Chennai City FC had agreed for a partnership with Swiss Super League giants FC Basel,[32][33] which owned 26 percent of the club and would develop football in the state by building football schools for young talents.[34] FC Basel would also have a player exchange program, including first team players, with CCFC and help the club with technical know how.[35][36]

Template:Cquote On 9 March 2019, Chennai City FC beat former champions Minerva Punjab FC 3–1 to be crowned the 2018–19 I-League champions.[37][38] This marked the finish of a very successful season for the club, defying all expectations to win the league.[39][40][41] Spanish-Uruguayan forward Pedro Manzi Cruz also scored a brace in this match, and was the joint top scorer of the league, scoring 21 league goals with record four hat-tricks.[42][43][44][45] This was Chennai City FC's maiden I-League title, and later they represented India at the 2020 AFC Champions League playoffs[46] and 2020 AFC Cup respectively.[47][48] They also participated in 2019 Sheikh Kamal International Club Cup in Bangladesh, but failed to advance to the knock-out stages.[49]

Chennai City FC also played in the Hero Super Cup during March–April 2019, and lost in the semi-finals to eventual champions FC Goa.[50] However, they did manage to win 2–1 against ISL champions Bengaluru FC in the quarter finals.[51] In December 2020, Satyasagara appointed as head coach,[52] and the club ended their 2020–21 I-League campaign in ninth place.

In December 2021, the AIFF club licensing committee has unanimously decided to not grant the exemption sought by the club, after having failed to receive the ICLS licence. As a result, Chennai City was thus barred from participating in the 2021–22 I-League.[53][54] The club also failed to took part in 2021–22 Chennai Senior Division league.

Kit manufacturers and shirt sponsors

Period Kit manufacturer Shirt sponsor
2016—2017 Classic Polo Baako[55]
2017—2018 Counter Sports[56] —
2018—2019 Penalty Uhlsport[57]
2019—2021 Nivia[58] TVS Group

Stadium

Template:Main

File:Jawaharlal Nehru stadium, coimbatore.jpg
Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Coimbatore on a matchday of I-League in 2018

The club played most of its home games at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Coimbatore.[59][6] Constructed in 1971, it is currently used mostly for football matches and has a capacity of 30,000.[60][61] Prior to 2017–2018 season, the club played their home matches at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium in Chennai.

In 2019, the club decided to play their continental matches (AFC Champions League playoffs and AFC Cup) at the EKA Arena in Ahmedabad.[62][63]

Players

Template:Empty section

Affiliated clubs

The following club was affiliated with Chennai City FC:

Honours

Domestic leagues

Notable players

For all former notable Chennai City FC players with a Wikipedia article, see: Chennai City FC players.

Past internationals

Continental record

Season Competition Round Club Home Away Aggregate
2020[79] AFC Champions League Preliminary round 1 Template:Flagicon Al-Riffa 0–1
2020[79] AFC Cup Group E Template:Flagicon Maziya S&RC 2–2 – Cancelled
Template:Flagicon TC Sports – –
Template:Flagicon Bashundhara Kings – –

Team records

I-League

Season Div. Tms. Pos. Attendance Federation Cup/Super Cup Durand Cup AFC Champions League AFC Cup
2016–17 I-League 10 8 2,949 Group stage DNP DNQ DNQ
2017–18 I-League 10 8 8,194 Qualification round DNP DNQ DNQ
2018–19 I-League 11 1[80] 6,138 Semi-finals Group stage DNQ DNQ
2019–20 I-League 11 7 7,825 DNP Group Stage Preliminary round 1 Group Stage
2020–21 I-League 11 9 Played in closed stadiums due to COVID-19 pandemic in India Tournament Suspended due to COVID-19 DNP DNQ DNQ
2021–22 I-League 13 Barred by AIFF TBD DNP DNQ DNQ
Key
  • Tms. = Number of teams
  • Pos. = Position in league
  • Attendance/G = Average league attendance
  • DNP = Did not participate
  • DNQ = Did not qualify

Overall

Template:Updated

Season I-League Asia Top Scorer
Template:Tooltip Template:Tooltip Template:Tooltip Template:Tooltip Template:Tooltip Template:Tooltip Template:Tooltip Template:Tooltip Template:Tooltip Template:Tooltip Template:Tooltip Template:Tooltip Template:Tooltip Template:Tooltip Player Goals
2016–17 18 4 5 9 15 29 17 8 – – – – – – Charles 4
2017–18 18 4 7 7 15 24 19 8 – – – – – – Joachim 5
2018–19 18 13 4 3 48 28 43 1 – – – – – – Manzi 21
2019–20 15 5 5 5 20 21 20 7 2 0 1 1 2 3 Yusa 5

Head coach

Template:Updated

Name Nationality From To P W D L GF GA Win%
Robin Charles Raja Template:IND 13 December 2016[81] 8 February 2017

Template:WDL

V. Soundararajan Template:IND 9 January 2017[82] 14 March 2018

Template:WDL

Akbar Nawas Template:SIN 15 March 2018[83] 26 October 2020

Template:WDL

Satyasagara Template:SIN 10 December 2020[84] 2021

Template:WDL

Team

See also

Notes

Template:Cnote2 Begin Template:Cnote2 Template:Cnote2 Template:Cnote2 End

References

  1. ↑ India – Chennai City FC – Results, fixtures, squad, statistics, photos, videos and news – Soccerway. us.soccerway.com. Retrieved 2021-01-24.
  2. ↑ Chennai City FC – Soccer – Team Profile – Results, fixtures, squad, statistics – Global Sports Archive. globalsportsarchive.com. Retrieved 2021-01-24.
  3. ↑ Chennai City FC signs three players for ISL 2017-'18. www.business-standard.com(24 July 2017). Retrieved 6 April 2018.
  4. ↑ Gokulam Kerala 1-1 Chennai City. Soccerway. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  5. ↑ I-League: Chennai City FC end five-match losing streak, thrash Indian Arrows 5-0. timesofindia.indiatimes.com. The Times of India(11 March 2021). Retrieved 6 May 2021.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Gokulam Kerala FC vs Chennai City FC | Match Details. I-League Official Website. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
  7. ↑ Beyond tiki-taka: The story behind Chennai City's remarkable turnaround. www.espn.com(27 November 2018). Retrieved 12 March 2021.
  8. ↑ Chennai City FC, The lions Template:Webarchive. Facebook.com. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
  9. ↑ I- League 2020-21: Chennai City FC First Kit Unveiled. footballexpress.in(8 January 2021). Retrieved 12 March 2021.
  10. ↑ I-League: Despite changes, teams gear up for new season, Vasudevan, Shyam. sportstar.thehindu.com. Sportstar(30 November 2019). Retrieved 29 October 2020.
  11. ↑ India - List of Foundation Dates, Schöggl, Hans. rsssf.com. Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  12. ↑ Nethaji Football Club has a new owner. www.thehindu.com. The Hindu(14 December 2013). Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  13. ↑ From Senior Division to I-League: The Chennai City FC story(11 December 2016). Retrieved 11 December 2016.
  14. ↑ Impasse between Chennai FA and Tamil Nadu FA hampering the football ecosystem in the state. www.goal.com. Goal(23 July 2020). Retrieved 11 May 2022.
  15. ↑ The lost glory of Chennai's football league({Template:Date).
  16. ↑ Champions Trophy to be back in Chennai. The Hindu(April 2016). Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  17. ↑ Football in Chennai – On a slippery surface. www.sportskeeda.com. Sportskeeda(20 March 2013). Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  18. ↑ India regional tournaments 1997/98 Template:Webarchive Rsssf. Retrieved 16 August 2021
  19. ↑ India 2005 Regional Championships. rsssf.com. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
  20. ↑ 4th Tamil Nadu State Ranking Tournament 2004, Chaudhuri, Arunava. indianfootball.de. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  21. ↑ 5th Tamil Nadu State Ranking Tournament 2005/06, Chaudhuri, Arunava. indianfootball.de. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  22. ↑ 6th Tamil Nadu State Ranking Tournament 2007, Chaudhuri, Arunava. indianfootball.de. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  23. ↑ Chennai City FC, Minerva Punjab FC Get Direct Entry Into I-League. news18.com(11 December 2016). Retrieved 13 April 2018.
  24. ↑ I-League Update: Chennai City FC and Minerva Punjab FC to play in the coming season, Noronha, Anselm. www.goal.com. Goal(11 December 2016). Retrieved 11 March 2017.
  25. ↑ We are not expecting freebies from Minerva, says Chennai City owner Rohit Ramesh, Saharoy, Shilarze. timesofindia.indiatimes.com. The Times of India(6 March 2019). Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  26. ↑ Viva Chennai: Viva Chennai likely to play I-League 2nd division. timesofindia.indiatimes.com(2 December 2017). Retrieved 2022-06-02.
  27. ↑ Indian Arrows 3-0 Chennai City. Soccerway. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
  28. ↑ Young talent shone for Chennai City FC but fell short of a few quality players in key areas. thefangarage.com. The Fan Garage. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  29. ↑ Aizawl FC start Federation Cup campaign with dramatic win over Chennai City. Hindustan Times. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  30. ↑ Chennai City ends Fed Cup campaign with win over Churchill. The Times of India. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  31. ↑ Chennai City bow out of Federation Cup despite win. business-standard.com. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  32. ↑ Indian Football: ISL and I-League clubs and their tie-ups with foreign clubs. www.goal.com. Goal(14 January 2021). Retrieved 6 February 2021.
  33. ↑ FEATUREDISL and I-League Clubs, Their Tie-ups With Foreign Sides, Pandab, Manas Ranjan. footballexpress.in. Football Express(3 February 2021). Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  34. ↑ CHENNAI CITY FC ROPE IN FC BASEL HOLDING AG AS STAKEHOLDERS. aiff.com. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  35. ↑ Federer's home club Basel to invest 20m euros in CCFC – Times of India. The Times of India. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  36. ↑ Der FCB und sein Bollywood-Farmteam – Basel steigt bei Chennai City ein. watson.ch. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  37. ↑ Chennai City FC win I-League 2018–19 title, East Bengal finish second. indiatoday.in. Retrieved 2019-03-09.
  38. ↑ India - List of National Champions. RSSSF. Retrieved 18 January 2015.
  39. ↑ Chennai City Crowned I-League 2018-19 Champions After Win Against Minerva Punjab. Press Trust of India (PTI)(9 March 2019). Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  40. ↑ The 2018/19 I-League End of Season Awards | Sportsbeatsindia, Dutta, Raja(2019-03-29). Retrieved 2021-03-27.
  41. ↑ The 2018/19 I-League End of Season Awards. The Away End(2019-03-13). Retrieved 2021-03-27.
  42. ↑ Manzi Hat trick 26 October 2018. Soccerway. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
  43. ↑ Manzi Hat trick 29 December 2018. Soccerway. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
  44. ↑ Manzi Hat trick 4 January 2019. Soccerway. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
  45. ↑ Manzi Hat trick 12 February 2019. Soccerway. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
  46. ↑ Chennai City FC set to play continental games from Ahmedabad next season. Goal.com. Retrieved 2019-07-19.
  47. ↑ AFC Cup 2020 group stage: Chennai City 2-2 Maziya S&RC Template:Webarchive the-afc.com. Asian Football Confederation. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
  48. ↑ Adolfo Fito's late equaliser sees Chennai City FC hold Maziya S&RC to 2-2 draw Template:Webarchive First Post. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
  49. ↑ Gokulam Kerala FC Dominate Chennai City FC to Reach Sheikh Kamal International Club Cup Semis. News18.com. News18. Retrieved 21 April 2021.
  50. ↑ FC Goa enter Super Cup final with 3–0 win over Chennai City. www.newindianexpress.com. Retrieved 2019-04-10.
  51. ↑ Chennai City knock out champions Bengaluru FC from Super Cup. indianexpress.com. Retrieved 2019-04-05.
  52. ↑ Chennai City FC name Satyasagara as new head coach. timesofindia.indiatimes.com. The Times of India(December 10, 2020). Retrieved 2020-12-11.
  53. ↑ AIFF bars Chennai City from I-League 2021-22, names Kenkre as replacement. sportstar.thehindu.com. Sportstar(4 December 2021). Retrieved 6 December 2021.
  54. ↑ Kenkre FC is all set to join I-League as Chennai City FC gets barred. thebridge.in. The Bridge(4 December 2021). Retrieved 6 December 2021.
  55. ↑ I-League 2017: Lifestyle brand 'Baako' buys stake in Chennai City FC, Muralidhahran, Ashwin. www.goal.com. Goal(22 January 2017). Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  56. ↑ Official First Team Home Kit #CCFC designed by @counter_sports for the upcoming @ILeagueOfficial Season! #PrideOfTamilNadu. @ChennaiCityFC(2017-10-30). Retrieved 2017-11-10.
  57. ↑ Chennai City announce strategic partnership with Uhlsports(19 August 2019). Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  58. ↑ Nivia Sports Official Website. Nivia Sports. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
  59. ↑ I-League 2017/18 : What does the season have in store?. sportskeeda.com(17 November 2017). Retrieved 2020-03-03.
  60. ↑ Chennai City to stay at Kovai for next 5 years. The Times of India(22 December 2017). Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  61. ↑ I-League: Pedro Manzi’s hat-trick helps Chennai City FC beat Indian Arrows 4-1 in season opener. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  62. ↑ Chennai City FC set to play continental games from Ahmedabad next season. Goal.com. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  63. ↑ Chennai City FC to play remaining AFC Cup fixtures in Maldives. Sportskeeda.com. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  64. ↑ FC Basel signs strategic partnership with Chennai City FC, Mukherjee, Abhishek. sportstar.thehindu.com. Sportstar(6 February 2019). Retrieved 6 February 2021.
  65. ↑ Tapping into FC Basel's expertise, Chennai City FC are building an exciting grassroots programme!, Muralidharan, Ashwin. www.goal.com. Goal(19 March 2020). Retrieved 6 February 2021.
  66. ↑ Chennai City close to securing massive European funding, Mergulhao, Marcus. timesofindia.indiatimes.com. The Times of India(26 October 2020). Retrieved 6 February 2021.
  67. ↑ Chennai City Triumph in Photo-Finish to Lift Maiden I-League Title. www.thequint.com. The Quint(9 March 2019). Retrieved 20 February 2021.
  68. ↑ Nethaji Football Club has a new owner. www.thehindu.com. The Hindu(14 December 2013). Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  69. ↑ Viva draw hands CFA Senior Division title to Chennai City FC. The New Indian Express(28 April 2017). Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  70. ↑ Chennai City FC players (A to Z) Template:Webarchive Worldfootball.net. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
  71. ↑ Chennai City FC part ways with Amiri after controversy • Infootball(10 March 2017). Retrieved 11 April 2017.
  72. ↑ I-League: Chennai City FC sign French forward Junior Joachim, Kyrgyzstan striker Ildar Amirov. www.firstpost.com. Firstpost(1 September 2017). Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  73. ↑ I-League 2017-18: Chennai City FC part ways with Murilo de Almeida. www.goal.com. Goal(24 January 2018). Retrieved 20 March 2021.
  74. ↑ Veniamin Shumeyko: Profile. worldfootball.net. HEIM:SPIEL. Retrieved 10 October 2020.
  75. ↑ Chennai City Squad. espn.in. ESPN. Retrieved 10 March 2021.
  76. ↑ I-League’s Real Kashmir FC signs Tibet’s No.1 goalie Tenzin Samdup. phayul.com. Phayul Newsdesk(5 September 2019). Retrieved 18 January 2021.
  77. ↑ Football: Lions forward Iqbal set to strut his stuff in India with Chennai City. www.straitstimes.com. The Straits Times(2020-12-12). Retrieved 2021-03-31.
  78. ↑ Singaporean forward Iqbal Hussain eyes a longer stint in India, Singh, Dilenjit. The New Paper(2021-03-31). Retrieved 2021-03-31.
  79. ↑ 79.0 79.1 How have Indian clubs fared in AFC Champions League and AFC Cup?. goal.com. Goal(1 April 2020). Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  80. ↑ India - List of National Champions. rsssf.com. Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 14 December 2021.
  81. ↑ I-League 2016/17: Chennai City FC announce their manager for their debut season. SportsKeeda(13 December 2016). Retrieved 17 December 2016.
  82. ↑ I-League 2017: Chennai City appoint V Soundararajan as head coach. Goal.com(9 February 2017). Retrieved 6 May 2021.
  83. ↑ Chennai City FC appoint Nawas as coach, Barcelona's Villa named assistant. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  84. ↑ Chennai City FC name Satyasagara as new head coach. Hindustan Times(2020-12-10). Retrieved 2021-01-16.
  85. ↑ In a landmark deal with Japanese J2 league club Albirex Niigata, Chennai City FC, the defending I-League champions, have released striker Pedro Manzi for a rumoured fee of Rs. 1.2 crore, which would be the highest so far in Indian football.
  86. ↑ I-League Over ISL Again: Chennai City FC Rakes in Record Transfer Fee for Pedro Manzi. News Click India. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  87. ↑ 3 Highest transfer fees in Indian football history, Dey, Sayak Dipta. www.sportskeeda.com. Sportskeeda(31 March 2020). Retrieved 19 March 2021.


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