Duli Pengiran Muda Mahkota Football Club (English: His Royal Highness the Crown Prince of Brunei Football Club; abbrev: DPMM FC) is a professional football club based in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei. The club played in the Brunei Premier League in the early 2000s, winning the league title in 2002 and 2004.
The club then decided to play in Malaysia, and joined the Malaysian Premier League as a foreign-based team in for the 2005–06 season.[1] They won promotion to the Malaysian Super League (the top tier of Malaysian football) at the end of their first season in Malaysian football, and then finished 3rd and 10th in the following two season in the Super League. The club then left the Malaysian league and joined Singapore's S.League for the 2009 season. They won the Singapore League Cup, but were forced to withdraw from the league competition five games before the end of the season after FIFA suspended the Brunei Football Association for government interference in its affairs, thus barring teams from Brunei from taking part in overseas competitions. All the club's league results for 2009 were therefore expunged. At the end of the suspension, they re-entered the S.League and won the title in 2015, just after a near-miss in 2014.
DPMM FC is owned by the Crown Prince of Brunei, Prince Al-Muhtadee Billah.
History
Beginnings in Brunei
DPMM FC started out as a college team in 1994, before being officially established as a commercial club in 2000. After being the most successful team in college-level football in Brunei, most of the team's talented players joined DPMM FC when it became a commercial team and the club became stronger and more established.[2]
In 2005, DPMM FC stopped playing in Brunei's domestic league and joined the Malaysia Premier League (the second tier of Malaysian football) as a foreign-based team, replacing the Brunei representative team.[1] The club was then promoted to the top tier of Malaysian football, Malaysia Super League via the play-offs after a 2–1 aggregate victory over Pahang.[6] They then remarkably finished in 3rd place in their first season in the top tier (2006–07).[7] In the following season (2007–08), they finished in 10th place. They then had to leave the Malaysia Super League due to the deregistration of the Brunei Football Association by the Registrar of Societies.[8]
Since 2004, DPMM FC had also competed annually in the Singapore Cup (a knock-out tournament which the Football Association of Singapore invites a number of teams from other countries to take part in alongside Singaporean clubs).[9]
Joining S.League, and suspension
After leaving the Malaysia Super League, DPMM FC joined Singapore's S.League for the 2009 season, becoming the first team in the league to play their home matches outside Singapore. The club quickly made an impact on the Singapore football scene by winning the Singapore League Cup in June 2009. They defeated the Singapore Armed Forces Football Club (SAFFC) in the final on penalties after the match had ended in a 1–1 draw. However, on 30 September that year, FIFA suspended the Brunei Football Association for government interference in its affairs.[10] This meant that teams from Brunei were no longer allowed to compete in tournaments run by other national member associations. The Football Association of Singapore appealed to FIFA to allow DPMM FC to finish the S.League season, but the appeal was rejected. The results of all DPMM's league matches for 2009 were therefore expunged.[11]
After 20 months of being suspended, FIFA has decided to lift the suspension off Brunei Darussalam. This means that the national team as well as the football teams from Brunei Darussalam are allowed to join any football competitions under FIFA. DPMM re-entered the S.League in 2012, and became dominant after the arrival of former English Premier League manager Steve Kean in 2014. They won their first S.League title in 2015, a year after losing ground in the final fixture of the 2014 season.[12]
Towards the conclusion of the 2017 S.League in November, DPMM FC announced their intention on their website to possibly move to the Malaysian league, which they last appeared in 2008. This intention was later "dashed" by the FAM and in particular by Football Malaysia LLP, which stipulated that DPMM FC have to play their home games in Malaysia and to have a squad full of Malaysians with Bruneians regarded as import players. DPMM called these rulings "unprofessional" and "insane".[14]
In late December, DPMM stated their intentions to join the Indonesian league for 2018 season instead.[15] This was made after a meeting between S.League clubs whereby new rules were set to restrict foreign imports to two, and the implementation of a youth-focused roster. However the move would be "technically impossible" to happen according to PSSI's secretary general a few days after the announcement was made.[16]
Further talks with FAS made at the turn of the year resulted in a compromise that was reached on 10 January 2018, where the S.League competition organisers would allow them to sign up to 3 foreign players instead of 2 with no age restrictions and DPMM will also not be subject to the same age restrictions as the local S.League clubs. Each local S.League team, apart from the Young Lions, will be required to have at least six under-23 players and eight under-30 players in the squad, with the remaining players to be of any age.[17]
Although they participated in the newly revamped Singapore Premier League in 2018, finishing in third place below champions Albirex and Home United, DPMM considered joining another league. Reports by Singapore press in October 2018 revealed that DPMM have submitted an official enquiry to join Thai League 1 for the 2019 season.[18] The club would later announce that they would be competing in the 2019 Singapore Premier League,[19] but afterwards expressed an interest to join Indonesia's Liga 1 in 2020.[20]
On 15 September 2019, DPMM were confirmed to be champions of the 2019 Singapore Premier League after their closest rivals Hougang United only managed to play a 4–4 draw with Geylang International, leaving the Bruneian club with an unassailable four-point lead at the top of the table.[21] They also reached the semi-finals of the Singapore Cup before being eliminated by via penalty shootout to Warriors FC on 30 October.[22]
In 2020, DPMM participated in the Singapore Premier League but could only play one game before the COVID-19 pandemic forced the league to be suspended until October.[23] The team was unable to fulfill the remaining fixtures due to travel restrictions between Brunei and Singapore, resulting in the inevitable exclusion from the year's SPL season.[24]
DPMM once again withdrew from the 2021 Singapore Premier League due to the ongoing travel restrictions imposed by the Brunei government, but not before showing intent to participate in the league.[25]
Due to the first team's withdrawal from the Singapore Premier League for the 2021 season, head coach Adrian Pennock announced that his team will be lacing up for the 2021 Brunei Super League that would commence in June of that year.[29] The league was suspended three months later due to increasing COVID-19 cases in Brunei and was eventually cancelled for the second successive season.[30]
DPMM FC began the process of returning to the Singapore Premier League after the restrictions necessitated by the pandemic eased since the year 2022. The AFC ratified the move in August of that year.[33] The Singapore Premier League website officially announced DPMM's participation for the 2023 season on 27 January 2023.[34] DPMM qualified for the 2023–24 AFC Cup qualification round for the first time in their history qualifying in the Preliminary round 2 where they face Myanmar club, Yangon United at the Thuwunna Stadium on 16 August 2023 but unfortunately, DPMM conceded a last minute goal which see them exit from the tournament. They finished seventh in the league and ended their year in fourth place in the 2023 Singapore Cup.
Stadium
Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium
DPMM played their home games at the Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium. The stadium can accommodate 30,000 spectators, which includes 110 seats for the royalties, 500 for the VIPs, and 3,000 in the grandstand section. The building is oriented in north-south direction with the grandstand located at the western section. It has a football field which fulfills FIFA standards, as well as the running track which fulfills IAAF standards. The stadium has a videomatrix scoreboard located at the northern section; it can display both Latin and Jawi writing.
Ahead of the 2024–25 Singapore Premier League season, DPMM will play their home matches at the Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium after a year hiatus of temporary playing their home matches at the Jalan Besar Stadium in Singapore.
Players
Current squad
As of 9 April 2024
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Pengiran Mohammad Fakharrazi bin Pengiran Haji Hassan, sometimes erroneously referred to as Ak Fakharazzi is a Bruneian footballer who plays as a right-sided defender or midfielder.
Mohammad Helmi bin Haji Zambin is a Bruneian footballer who plays as a right-sided full-back or midfielder.
Mohamad Najib bin Haji Tarif is a Bruneian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder or defender for DPMM and the Brunei national team.
Lance Corporal (U) Rosmin bin Haji Muhammad Kamis is a Bruneian former footballer and current fitness coach at DPMM FC. He was a midfielder for the Bruneian M-League representative team and most famously DPMM FC as captain of the 2015 S.League championship winners.
Sairol bin Haji Sahari is a Bruneian retired footballer who played as a defender. He is currently an assistant coach at Kasuka FC.
Mohammad Shah Razen bin Said is a Bruneian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Brunei Super League club Kasuka. He is the current record goalscorer for Brunei with eight goals.
Adi bin Said is a Bruneian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Brunei Super League club Kasuka FC. He has played in Malaysia.
Muhammad Maududi Hilmi bin Kasmi is a Bruneian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Brunei Super League club Kasuka. He has played for professional club DPMM FC for four seasons in the Singaporean S.League.
Muhammad Azwan bin Ali Rahman is a Bruneian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for DPMM, which he captains, and the Brunei national team.
Mohammad Nurikhwan bin Othman is a Bruneian professional footballer who plays as a defender or midfielder for DPMM and the Brunei national team.
Soldadu Abdul Azizi bin Ali Rahman is a Bruneian footballer who plays as a striker. He is the current leading goalscorer of the Brunei Super League since its establishment in 2012.
Soldadu (U) Mohammad Shafie bin Haji Mohammad Efenddy is a Bruneian international footballer who plays for MS ABDB of the Brunei Super League and the Brunei national football team. He is adept at playing on either flank or as a striker.
Muhammad Helmi Wafiy bin Muhammad Ammar Naim, previously known as Suhaimi Anak Sulau is a Bruneian footballer who plays as a defender for Liang Lumut Belait ST.
Soldadu Muhammad Razimie bin Ramlli is a Bruneian footballer who plays as a striker. Nicknamed Belanda, he is a four-time Brunei Super League winner with MS ABDB and three-time domestic FA Cup medalist, twice at ABDB and once at DPMM. Razimie left DPMM in February 2024.
Haji Rahimni bin Haji Pundut is a Bruneian footballer who plays for Setia Perdana FC in the Brunei Super League as a striker. Due to a typing error, his patronym is mistakenly referred to as Pundat.
Alizanda bin Sitom is a Bruneian footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Lun Bawang FC of the Brunei Super League. Having played for the Brunei national representative team in Malaysia's M-League System at the turn of the century, he is notable for returning to DPMM for a third spell at the age of 46.
Muhammad Hanif @ Abdul Hadi bin Hamir is a Bruneian professional footballer who plays as a defender for DPMM FC.
Hazwan bin Hamzah is a Bruneian international footballer who plays as a defender for Kasuka FC of the Brunei Super League. He previously played for Rimba Star FC, Indera SC as well as DPMM FC, and was part of the Brunei Under-21 team that won the 2012 Hassanal Bolkiah Trophy.
Muhammad Haimie bin Abdullah Nyaring, formerly known as Haimie Anak Nyaring, is a Bruneian professional footballer of Iban descent who plays as a goalkeeper for DPMM FC and the Brunei national team.
Muhammad Haziq Kasyful Azim bin Mohammad Hasimulabdillah is a Bruneian footballer who plays as a defender or midfielder for Brunei Super League club Kasuka and the Brunei national team.
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