ARA FC

Last updated

ARA
ARA FC logo.svg
Full nameAhmedabad Racquet Academy Football Club [1]
Nickname(s)The Alphas, Ahmedabad Alphas
Short nameARA
Founded2016;9 years ago (2016)
Ground EKA Arena
Capacity20,000
OwnerVikram Patel
Head coachSalim Pathan
League I-League 3
Gujarat SFA Club Championship
Website https://www.racquetacademy.in/sports/football/
Departments of ARA FC
Football pictogram.svg Football pictogram.svg Football pictogram.svg
Football
(Men's)		Football
(Women's)		Football
(Reserves)

ARA Football Club is an Indian professional football club based in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. [2] [3] [4] Founded in 2016, the club is nicknamed "Ahmedabad Alphas", [5] and previously competed in I-League 2nd Division. [6] [7] [8] ARA FC is the first professional team from Gujarat to compete in the nationwide league. [9] [10] The club also competes in Gujarat SFA Club Championship.

Contents

Their reserve and youth teams play in both Hero Sub-Junior League and Hero Elite League, while women team is member of Indian Women's League. [11]

History

Academy and early years

Ahmedabad Racquet Academy (ARA) started its journey as a professional multi-sports academy in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, which mainly consists of racquet sports and has been running since 2011 and began participating in Ahmedabad Junior league. [12] [13] The football club was among the newest projects established by the academy in recent times as an initiative by owner Vikram Patel. [14] [15]

Formation of club

The existing academy owned by Patel emerged as ARA FC in 2016 to ensure development of football in the Indian state of Gujarat. [15] On 19 July 2018, their academy were accredited and given two stars based on eligibility criteria, which allowed them to play in Youth League U18. [16] ARA as a club became affiliated with Gujarat State Football Association (GSFA) in 2017, [17] and began competing in the ADFA Premier Division League. [18] [19]

2018–present

On 20 November 2018, AIFF nominated ARA for proposed inclusion in the 2018–19 2nd Division League. [20] [21] On 7 December, it was announced that ARA FC would be one of nine clubs to play that season. [22] Thus the Ahmedabad-based club became the only team from the state competing in a domestic tier league. [23]

In their maiden I-League 2nd Division in the 2018–19 season, [24] ARA finished on fourth place in Group A with 11 points in 8 matches as Lonestar Kashmir progressed to the final round. [25] [26]

They were nominated for participating in the 2021 I-League Qualifiers, since emerging victorious in Gandhinagar Premier League. [27] They began their journey with a 1–1 draw against Corbett FC on 5 October at the Bangalore Football Stadium [28] but did not advanced to the final round. [29] In February–March 2023, the club participated in Stafford Challenge Cup in Bangalore. [30] [31] In August 2023, ARA gained I-League 3 spot to compete in the inaugural edition. [32] [33] [34]

Home stadium

EKA Arena by TransStadia, home ground of ARA EKA Arena Stadium(TransStadia).jpg
EKA Arena by TransStadia, home ground of ARA

ARA FC plays its home matches at the EKA Arena, which has a capacity of 20,000 spectators. [35] The stadium is located in Kankaria Lake, Ahmedabad, and has additional 10,000 temporary seats on the pitch area. [36]

Panoramic view of the stadium Aka arena .jpg
Panoramic view of the stadium

Kit manufacturers and shirt sponsors

PeriodKit manufacturerShirt sponsor
2018–2021 SEVEN [37] Amul [38]
2021–present Decathlon Sports

Current squad

As of 13 March 2023

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

No.Pos.NationPlayer
1 GK Flag of India.svg  IND sangramjith Roy
2 DF Flag of India.svg  IND Daniel
3 DF Flag of India.svg  IND Surajit Seal
5 FW Flag of India.svg  IND Vivekananda Sagayaraj
6 MF Flag of India.svg  IND Hijam Lenin Singh
7 FW Flag of India.svg  IND Manvir Singh
8 MF Flag of India.svg  IND Rutig Ahirrao
9 FW Flag of India.svg  IND Fredsan Marshall
10 FW Flag of India.svg  IND
11 DF Flag of India.svg  IND Jacob John
12 DF Flag of India.svg  IND Shanid Valan
13 DF Flag of India.svg  IND Parnenda Singh Thakur
14 MF Flag of India.svg  IND D Sheltohn Paul
15 MF Flag of India.svg  IND Lalthankuma
No.Pos.NationPlayer
16 MF Flag of India.svg  IND Pratik Swami
17 MF Flag of India.svg  IND Aditya Prathap
18 MF Flag of India.svg  IND Vedant Kharkrwal
19 MF Flag of India.svg  IND Prabin Tigga
20 FW Flag of India.svg  IND Lalruatmawia
21 GK Flag of India.svg  IND Vishal Rajkumar Dube
23 MF Flag of India.svg  IND Khaidem Vicky Meitei
24 DF Flag of India.svg  IND Rakesh Oram
25 FW Flag of India.svg  IND Jay Kanani
27 DF Flag of India.svg  IND Palash Barber
28 MF Flag of India.svg  IND Bikramjit Singh
30 DF Flag of India.svg  IND Jenishsinh Rana
31 GK Flag of India.svg  IND Ankit Bhuyan
33 MF Flag of India.svg  IND Yami Longvah

Current technical staff

As of 12 November 2019
PositionName
Team manager Flag of India.svg Marmik Pandya
Head coach Flag of India.svg Vivek Nagul
Assistant coach Flag of India.svg Salim Pathan
Physio Flag of India.svg Falgun Bhatt

Honours

League

Cup

Records

SeasonDiv.Tms.Pos.Attendance/G Federation Cup / Super Cup AFC Champions League AFC Cup
2018–19 IL216G4th650DNPDNPDNP
2019–20 IL218Final round 4th –DNPDNPDNP
Key

Managerial record

updated on 25 October 2020

NameNationalityFromToPWDLGFGAWin%
Vivek Nagul [43] Flag of India.svg  India 20182021197482829036.84
Manuel Retamero Fraile Flag of Spain.svg  Spain 2021000000!—

Notable players

For current and former notable ARA FC players with a Wikipedia article, see: ARA FC players .

Other departments

Women's team

ARA FC has its women's football team that competes in the Indian Women's League, the highest division of Indian women's football. [44] Before the kick-off of 2021–22 Indian Women's League season, four teams including ARA Women from four states played each other once in April 2022, in the qualifying round at the Ambedkar Stadium in New Delhi and they qualified for the final round after topping the group. [45]

Honours

Youth men's

Youth men's team of ARA competes in the Ahmedabad Elite Youth Cup Ahmedabad. [47] Club's U17 team participated in "regional group stages" of 2022–23 U-17 Youth Cup. [48]

Football academy

Football Academy of ARA FC gained 'elite category' accreditation by the All India Football Federation in December 2023. [49]

See also

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References

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