| Season | 2019 |
|---|---|
| Champions | DPMM FC (2nd title) |
| AFC Champions League | Tampines Rovers |
| AFC Cup | Hougang United Geylang International |
← 2018 2020 → | |
The 2019 Singapore Premier League (also known as the AIA Singapore Premier League due to sponsorship reasons) was the second season of the Singapore Premier League, the top-flight Singaporean professional league for association football clubs, since its rebranding in 2018. A major overhaul from the new FAS management was made from this season onwards to improve the standard of Singapore football. [1]
The following key changes were made to the rules for the 2019 season: [2]
A total of 9 teams compete in the league. Albirex Niigata (S) and DPMM FC are invited foreign clubs from Japan and Brunei respectively. Despite large criticism and discussion against the Young Lions project, the Young Lions will continue to compete till 2019 for the purposes of training and preparing for the 2019 SEA Games. [6] The criticism mainly focused on the poor performances every season by the largely youth team made up of Singapore Football's brightest prospects. Season-long consecutive losses against the rest of the more mature teams inflicts serious long-term consequences on the morale of the players, considering that most of these players are in the developmental ages of their footballing career. The new age restrictions imposed on the rest of the Singapore Premier League clubs could be seen as giving the Young Lions a better advantage in terms of seniority, but most critics and fans of Singapore football are still wanting the FAS to abolish the FAS-managed Young Lions and have them developed under the guidance of genuine local clubs.
| Team | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Albirex Niigata (S) | Jurong East Stadium | 2,700 |
| Balestier Khalsa | Bishan Stadium | 3,500 |
| DPMM FC | Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium | 28,000 |
| Geylang International | Our Tampines Hub | 5,000 |
| Home United | Bishan Stadium | 3,500 |
| Hougang United | Jalan Besar Stadium | 6,000 |
| Tampines Rovers | Our Tampines Hub | 5,000 |
| Warriors FC | Jurong East Stadium | 2,700 |
| Young Lions | Jalan Besar Stadium | 6,000 |
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| Team | Head coach | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Main Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albirex Niigata (S) | | | Mizuno [8] | Canon |
| Balestier Khalsa | | | Lotto | Jeep [10] |
| DPMM FC | | | Lotto | |
| Geylang International | | | FBT [12] | Epson |
| Home United | | | Puma | Linco Investments |
| Hougang United | | | Warrix | Jalan Besar Stadium |
| Tampines Rovers | | | Hummel [16] | Hyunudai Avante |
| Warriors FC | | | Joma | Rhino Sports |
| Young Lions | | | Nike | - |
| Team | Outgoing Head Coach | Manner of Departure | Date of Vacancy | Position in table | Incoming Head Coach | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Geylang International | | End of exchange | 29 September 2018 [19] | Pre-Season | | 21 December 2018 [20] |
| Home United | | Signed by | 8 October 2018 [21] | Pre-Season | | 3 December 2018 [22] |
| Tampines Rovers | | Sacked | 9 October 2018 [23] | Pre-Season | | 9 October 2018 [24] |
| Tampines Rovers | | No license | 9 October 2018 | Pre-Season | | 9 October 2018 |
| DPMM FC | | Sacked | 16 October 2018 [25] | Pre-Season | | 17 October 2018 [26] |
| Warriors FC | | End of Contract | 31 October 2018 [27] | Pre-Season | | 1 November 2018 |
| Albirex Niigata (S) | | End of contract | 30 November 2018 [28] | Pre-Season | | 11 December 2018 [29] |
| Hougang United | NA | NA | 28 December 2018 | Pre-Season | | 28 December 2018 [30] |
| Balestier Khalsa | | Signed by | 26 January 2019 [31] | Pre-Season | | 4 February 2019 [32] |
| Home United | | Sacked | 19 April 2019 [33] | 7th | | 19 April 2019 [34] |
| Home United | | End of Caretaker | 2 July 2019 [35] | 6th | | 2 July 2019 [36] |
| Home United | | Step down (health reason) | 18 August 2019 [37] | 5th | | 18 August 2019 [38] |
| Balestier Khalsa | | Sacked | 24 September 2019 | 9th | | 24 September 2019 [39] |
Singapore Premier League clubs could sign three imports from next season after the increase in foreign player quota was raised at the Football Association of Singapore's 36th Annual Congress [3]
Albirex Niigata can sign up unlimited number of Singaporean players for the new season. Only 1 local player above 23 years old is allowed. [40]
Players name in bold indicates the player was registered during the mid-season transfer window.
| Club | Player 1 | Player 2 | Player 3 | U21 Player 1 | U21 Player 2 | U21 Player 3 | Former Players |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albirex Niigata (S) | | | | | | | |
| Balestier Khalsa | | | | ||||
| DPMM FC | | | | ||||
| Geylang International | | | | | |||
| Home United | | | | ||||
| Hougang United | | | | | |||
| Tampines Rovers | | | | | |||
| Warriors FC | | | | ||||
Note 1: Albirex, a Japanese club, is allowed to sign as many locals as their budget allows. However, the club are only allowed one Singaporean over the age of 23.
Note 2: DPMM FC, a Bruneian club, can sign 3 non-Bruneian foreigners.
Note 3: Singapore teams can sign 4 foreigners, of which 2 must be below 21 years old.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DPMM [a] (C) | 24 | 15 | 5 | 4 | 51 | 25 | +26 | 50 | |
| 2 | Tampines Rovers | 24 | 12 | 8 | 4 | 52 | 29 | +23 | 44 | Qualification for AFC Champions League preliminary round 1 |
| 3 | Hougang United | 24 | 13 | 4 | 7 | 58 | 45 | +13 | 43 | Qualification for AFC Cup group stage |
| 4 | Albirex Niigata (S) [a] | 24 | 12 | 5 | 7 | 36 | 25 | +11 | 41 | |
| 5 | Geylang International | 24 | 10 | 3 | 11 | 41 | 48 | −7 | 33 | |
| 6 | Home United | 24 | 9 | 3 | 12 | 34 | 46 | −12 | 30 | |
| 7 | Warriors | 24 | 6 | 5 | 13 | 40 | 56 | −16 | 23 | |
| 8 | Young Lions [a] | 24 | 6 | 4 | 14 | 21 | 38 | −17 | 22 | |
| 9 | Balestier Khalsa | 24 | 4 | 5 | 15 | 37 | 58 | −21 | 17 |
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | | DPMM FC | 21 |
| 2 | | Hougang United | 16 |
| 3 | | Tampines Rovers | 15 |
| 4 | | Warriors FC | 12 |
| 5 | | Balestier Khalsa | 10 |
| 6 | | Hougang United | 9 |
| 6 | | DPMM FC | 9 |
| 6 | | Warriors FC | 9 |
| 6 | | Balestier Khalsa | 9 |
| 6 | | Geylang International | 9 |
| 11 | | Geylang International | 8 |
| 11 | | Hougang United | 8 |
| 13 | | Albirex Niigata (S) | 7 |
| 13 | | Albirex Niigata (S) | 7 |
| 13 | | Home United | 7 |
| 13 | | Tampines Rovers | 7 |
| Rank | Player | Club | Clean sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | | DPMM FC | 10 |
| 2 | | Albirex Niigata (S) | 8 |
| 3 | | Tampines Rovers | 6 |
| 4 | | Home United | 5 |
| 5 | | Hougang United | 4 |
| Player | For | Against | Result | Date | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | DPMM FC | Balestier Khalsa | 7–1 | 13 April 2019 | [64] |
| | DPMM FC | Warriors FC | 3–0 | 14 September 2019 | [65] |
| | Geylang International | Hougang United | 4–4 | 15 September 2019 | [66] |
| | Hougang United | DPMM FC | 4–5 | 29 September 2019 | [67] |
Note4 Player scored 4 goals 5 Player scored 5 goals
| Player | Team | Against | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| | Hougang United | Tampines Rovers | 3 March 2019 |
| | Geylang International | Balestier Khalsa | 31 March 2019 |
| | Young Lions | Tampines Rovers | 29 May 2019 |
| | Tampines Rovers | Albirex Niigata (S) | 15 June 2019 |
| | Geylang International | Warriors FC | 18 September 2019 |
| Player | For | Against | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| | Tampines Rovers | Hougang United | 3 March 2019 |
| | Tampines Rovers | Home United | 8 March 2019 |
| | Albirex Niigata (S) | Warriors FC | 13 April 2019 |
| | Hougang United | Balestier Khalsa | 12 May 2019 |
| | Warriors FC | DPMM FC | 6 July 2019 |
| | Balestier Khalsa | Warriors FC | 19 July 2019 |
| | Home United | Balestier Khalsa | 14 August 2019 |
| | Tampines Rovers | Albirex Niigata (S) | 18 August 2019 |
| | Home United | Hougang United | 1 September 2019 |
| | Geylang International | Home United | 21 September 2019 |
| Month | Player of the Month | Young Player of the Month | Reference | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coach | Club | Player | Club | ||
| April | | DPMM FC | | Albirex Niigata (S) | |
| May | | Warriors FC | | Albirex Niigata (S) | |
| June | | Geylang International | | Geylang International | |
| July | | Geylang International | | Geylang International | |
| August | | Balestier Khalsa | | Young Lions | |
| September | | Hougang United | | Warriors FC | |
| Awards | Winners | Club |
|---|---|---|
| Player of the Year | | Hougang United |
| Young Player of the Year | | Home United |
| Coach of the Year | | DPMM FC |
| Top Scorer Award | | DPMM FC |
| Fair Play Award | Albirex Niigata (S) | |
| Referee of the Year | | — |