Thimphu City FC

Last updated
Thimphu City
Thimphu City FC 2016 Logo.png
Full nameThimphu City Football Club
Nickname(s)The Citizens
The Reds
Short nameTCFC
Founded2012;12 years ago (2012)
Ground Changlimithang Stadium
Capacity15,000
PresidentHishey Tshering
Manager Jörg Steinebrunner
League Bhutan Premier League
2023Bhutan Premier League, 2nd of 10
Website Club website

Thimphu City FC is a Bhutanese professional football club based in Thimphu that competes in the Bhutan Premier League, the top level of football in Bhutan. Founded in 2012, they qualified for the inaugural Bhutan National League in the same year. Formerly known as Zimdra FC, the club was refounded as Thimphu City FC in 2012 and again qualified for the 2013 Bhutan National League, finishing second behind eventual winners Yeedzin. They have won the Thimphu League and the first National League title in 2016. [1] They also have a futsal section.

Contents

History

The club was founded in 2012 as formal successor of Zimdra FC, which first recorded involvement in top-flight football in Bhutan in 2011, when they finished as runners-up to eventual winners Yeedzin in a truncated season consisting of a single round-robin set of matches in anticipation of the commencement of a new Bhutan National League. [2]

The following season was also reasonably successful. Zimdra again finished as runners-up in the A-Division, this time being beaten to the title by Drukpol, despite beating Drukpol in the final game of the season. [3] During that campaign, they went through the whole competition unbeaten, dropping points only in a draw with Drukpol and two draws with Yeedzin. [3] In finishing second in the A-Division, they qualified for the inaugural National League, though did not fare quite so well in this competition, finishing fifth out of six competing teams, winning five and drawing one of their ten games. [3] Zimdra kept the name in various veteran tournaments.

For a third season in a row, Thimphu City, as senior team had now been renamed, [4] finished as runners-up in the A-Division, winning five and drawing one of their eight games, but finishing five points behind champions Yeedzin. [4] they performed better than the previous season in the National League finishing in third place, comfortably ahead of Drukpol, with five wins and three draws from their eight games, but three points behind champions Ugyen Academy. [4] Prior to 2013, Thimphu City had been in a difficult financial situation. [5] Owner Hishey Tshering was spending a lot of his own money at the time, paying salaries and covering school fees for younger players in a football league where no money is generated from gate receipts and sponsorship is thin on the ground. [5] A friend of Tshering's and some other private sponsors contributed money so that the club was able to pay between 20 and 40 thousand Ngultrum to its players. [5]

At the halfway point of the 2014 season, Thimphu looked like they might finally be able to go that step further and claim a first A-Division title, as they led by three points from Drukpol with five wins and a draw from six matches, dropping points only against Druk Star. [6] However, they slipped up in the penultimate round of matches, losing 5–1 to Druk United. [6] Thimphu had played all their matches and led the league by a point. However, that loss to Druk United meant they were now only a point behind with a game still to play. Druk United thumped Druk Star 8–3 in this final game to take the A-Division title and consign Thimphu to a fourth-straight second place, though they could take consolation in the fact that they had again qualified for the National League. [6]

Thimphu City enjoyed a strong start to the 2014 National League season, leading the league at the halfway point, having dropped points only in an opening-day 4–0 defeat to eventual winners Druk United. [6] The second half of the season was less successful. Although they achieved a season-high victory 16–0 against bottom-placed Bhutan Clearing, they only won one other game and slipped to a final position of third, behind Druk United and Ugyen Academy. [6]

Honours

Continental record

All results list Thimphu City's goal tally first.

SeasonCompetitionRoundClubHomeAway Agg.
2017 AFC Cup Preliminary round Flag of Maldives.svg Club Valencia 0–00–30–3
2021 Preliminary round 1 Flag of Maldives.svg Eagles 0–2

Related Research Articles

The Bhutan Super League, previously known as the Thimphu League and Bhutan A-Division, was the men's football league in Bhutan. Until 2012, it was the lone national top division. Between 2013 and 2020, it was played as the second division and the qualifier for the Bhutan Premier League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Transport United FC</span> Association football club in Bhutan

Transport United Football Club is a Bhutanese professional football club based in Thimphu that competes in the Bhutan Premier League, the top level of Bhutanese football. The club was founded in 2001 and plays at the Changlimithang Stadium. Transport United has won five national championships, and was a dominant force in Bhutanese football throughout much of the first decade of the 21st century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yeedzin FC</span> Association football club in Bhutan

Yeedzin Football Club was a football club from Thimphu, Bhutan. Founded in 2002, they were promoted from the B-Division to the A-Division in the same year. They won their first A-Division title in 2008 and have won a total of four A-Division championships. They also qualified for the National League in 2012 and 2013, winning the inaugural national competition in 2012. They have been Bhutan's representative in the AFC President's Cup on four occasions, and lost all of their twelve games played in the competition with a goal difference of –75.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Druk Stars FC</span> Association football club in Bhutan

Druk Stars FC, sometimes referred to as Druk Star FC, was a Bhutanese football club from Thimphu. The team have won the national championship twice and competed in the A-Division from 2002, when they won their first title, through to 2010, having won a second title in 2009. They were absent from the A-Division in 2011, but played and won the 2012 B-Division. Returning to the top flight, they qualified for the National League for the first time in 2014. In addition to their two A-Division and one B-Division title, they have also represented Bhutan in the AFC President's Cup in 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Drukpol FC</span> Bhutanese football club

Drukpol FC, sometimes referred to as Druk Pol FC, was a football club from Thimphu, Bhutan. Until 1996, the team was called Royal Bhutan Police FC. Drukpol FC has won the A-Division championship a record eight times, more than any other team in Bhutan. The team's home ground was Changlimithang Stadium.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dzongree FC</span> Bhutanese football club

Dzongree Football Club is a professional football club from Thimphu, Bhutan. They finished as the runners-up of the A-Division in 2003, but have spent most of their history either in mid-table in the A-Division or playing in the B-Division.

Nangpa Football Club was a football club from Thimphu, Bhutan, who played in the A Division between 2010 and 2012. They are one of the least successful teams to have played top-flight football in Bhutan, finishing last in each of the three seasons in which they competed.

The 2012–13 Bhutan National League was the first season of the Bhutan National League. It was organized by the Bhutan Football Federation and sponsored by Coca-Cola. The National League replaced the A-Division as the country's premier football competition and would provide Bhutan's entrant to the 2013 AFC President's Cup. the A-Division continues as a football competition, but is now merely a qualifying round for Thimpu-based teams. The top three teams in the A-Division progressed to the national league where they were joined by three other teams representing other districts within Bhutan. The A-Division was won by Druk Pol, but were beaten to the national title by fellow A-Division competitors Yeedzin who won the inaugural competition, their fifth top flight title overall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ugyen Academy FC</span> Association football club in Bhutan

Ugyen Academy Football Club is a Bhutanese professional football club based in Punakha that competes in the Bhutan Premier League, the top level of Bhutanese football. They won the Bhutan National League title in 2013 and represented Bhutan in the 2014 AFC President's Cup.

Phuentsholing City FC is a professional football club from Phuentsholing, Bhutan, based at the PSA Phuentsholing Stadium. It finished fifth in the inaugural season of the Bhutan National League. The club has been sponsored by the Penden Group of Companies.

Rigzhung Football Club was a football club from Thimphu, Bhutan, based at Changlimithang. Having won the B-Division in 2002, they spent a number of seasons struggling in the A-Division and regularly finished bottom or second from bottom only to gain a reprieve whether through relegation playoffs or because there was no relegation that season. After several years, they were finally sent down to the B-Division, where they were last recorded playing in 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Druk United FC</span> Association football club in Bhutan

Druk United FC was a Bhutanese football club based in Thimphu that competed in the Bhutan Premier League, the top division of Bhutanese football. They played their home games at the Changlimithang Stadium.

Choden was a football club from Bhutan, based at Changlimithang, consisting of players from the U-19 Bhutan national team, who played in the Bhutan A-Division, then the top level of football in Bhutan, but since replaced by a full national league. They finished fifth in the 2011 season, the last season where the A-Division was the top flight. Although they were not formally relegated at the end of the 2011 season, they do not appear to have taken part either in the 2012 A-Division, nor consequently the 2012–13 Bhutan National League.

The 2013 Bhutan National League started on 14 September 2013 and ended on 23 November 2013 and was the second time that a true national league competition was held in Bhutan, following from the inaugural season the previous year. Again the A-Division served as a qualifying round for teams based in Thimpu, who were then joined by regional teams for the national stage. Yeedzin won the A-Division, but were beaten into second place in the National League by Ugyen Academy.

The 2014 Bhutan National League was the third season of national football competition in Bhutan, having replaced the A-Division (Bhutan) in 2013. Again, the A-Division provided the qualifiers, with the top four teams in that competition being awarded places in the National League alongside regional teams. The league was sponsored by Coca-Cola. Druk United won the Championship on goal difference from Ugyen Academy and, as a result of the abolition of the AFC President's Cup, will be the first team from Bhutan to take part in the AFC Cup.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bhutan Premier League</span> Mens professional football league in Bhutan

The Bhutan Premier League, currently known as the Bank of Bhutan Premier League due to sponsorship reasons, is the men's highest division of professional football in Bhutan. It also provides Bhutan's entrant for continental competition, the AFC Challenge League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bhutan Clearing FC</span> Bhutanese football club

Bhutan Clearing was a football club from Phuentsholing, Bhutan, which competed in the Bhutan National League, the top flight of football in Bhutan.

Druk Athletic was a football club from Thimphu, Bhutan, that competed in the A-Division, the highest level of football in Bhutan. They originally competed in the second tier of football, but eventually won promotion to the A-Division, there they remained for a number of seasons, although they almost perennially struggled against relegation, before finally succumbing in 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">FC Terton</span> Association football club in Bhutan

FC Terton was a Bhutanese football club based in Thimphu which most recently competed in the 2022 Bhutan Premier League Qualifiers. In 2015, they became Bhutan's national champions for the first and only time, and subsequently represented the country in the AFC Cup.

The 2016 Bhutan National League was the fifth season of the national football competition in Bhutan, having replaced the A-Division (Bhutan) in 2013. Again, the Thimphu League provides the qualifiers from Thimphu, with the top three teams in that competition being awarded places in the National League alongside three regional teams.

References

  1. ↑ "Changlingmethang Artifical[sic] Turf". bhutanolympiccommittee.org. Bhutan Olympic Committee . Retrieved 6 April 2015.
  2. 1 2 Stokkermans, Karel; Jigmi, Sonam. "Bhutan 2011". RSSSF . Retrieved 27 June 2014.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Schöggl, Hans; Stokkermans, Karel; Jigmi, Sonam. "Bhutan 2012". RSSSF . Retrieved 27 June 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Schöggl, Hans; Stokkermans, Karel; Jigmi, Sonam. "Bhutan 2013". RSSSF . Retrieved 27 June 2014.
  5. 1 2 3 Dorji, Tshering (23 November 2013). "Local clubs face uphill task to stay afloat". kuenselonline.com. Kuensel Online. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 27 June 2014.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Stokkermans, Karel; Jigmi, Sonam. "Bhutan 2014". RSSSF . Retrieved 27 June 2014.
  7. ↑ "Bhutan 2018". RSSSF . Retrieved 28 July 2019.
  8. ↑ "Citizens cap year with national futsal title". kuenselonline.com. 27 December 2016. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
  9. ↑ "Thimphu City FC wins national futsal league". kuenselonline.com. 21 December 2018. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.