Thiruvananthapuram Kombans FC

Thiruvananthapuram Kombans

Full name	Thiruvananthapuram Kombans Football Club
Nickname	The Kombans
Short name	TKFC
Founded	May 2024;17 months ago (May 2024)
Ground	Chandrasekharan Nair Stadium
Capacity	20,000
Owner	Mohammed Illias Sahadulla K. C. Chandrahasan T. J. Mathews
Head coach	James McAloon
League	Super League Kerala
Website	kombansfc.com
Home colours Away colours

Thiruvananthapuram Kombans Football Club is an indian, professional football club based in the city of Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, competing in the Super League Kerala. The club was founded in May 2024. ^[1]

History

Thiruvananthapuram Kombans FC (TKFC) represent the vibrant football culture of Kerala, specifically from the capital city, Thiruvananthapuram. The fan club of Thiruvananthapuram Kombans FC is called Kombans Fanatics.

Thiruvananthapuram Kombans FC made their debut in the 2024 Super League Kerala on September 10, in a match against Calicut FC. Held at the EMS Stadium, the game ended in a 1–1 draw. Thiruvananthapuram Kombans FC earned their first win on September 16, defeating Thrissur Magic FC 2–0 at their home ground. ^[2]

Ownership and finances

Thiruvananthapuram Kombans FC's patrons are Princess Gowri Parvathi Bayi, a member of the former royal family of Travancore, Dr. Shashi Tharoor MP, Jacob Punnoose IPS, Dr. Mohammed Illias Sahadulla, chairman and managing director of KIMS Hospital, Mr. Terance Alex, Founder and CEO of Wattsun Energy, K. C. Chandrahasan, managing director of Kerala Travels, T. J. Mathews, co-owner of Kovalam FC, G. Vijaya Raghavan, founder of Technopark, R. Anil Kumar and N. S. Abhayakumar. ^[3]

Ground

Chandrasekharan Nair Stadium

Chandrasekharan Nair Stadium, located in Thiruvananthapuram, is the home ground of Thiruvananthapuram Kombans FC. This historic stadium hosts various domestic and regional football matches. ^{[4] [5]} Ahead of the inaugural Super League Kerala season, Thiruvananthapuram Komans FC announced the Chandrasekharan Nair Stadium (CSN) in Thiruvananthapuram as their official home ground. The club signed a three-year agreement to use the venue for twelve days each year, while the stadium underwent a ₹1.5-crore renovation ahead of the season. The upgrades included resoling of the football turf funded by the franchise and installation of new floodlights financed by the league organisers. Club co-owner T. J. Mathew stated that the team intends to construct a dedicated stadium within the three-year period ^[6] .

Performance

Season 1 (2024)

Thiruvananthapuram Komans FC participated in the inaugural season of the Super League Kerala under head coach Sérgio Alexandre ^[7] . The club built its overseas core entirely from Brazil, registering six foreign players: Patrick Mota, Davi Kuhn, Marcos Wilder, Renan Januário, Michel Américo, and Autemar Bispo.

Across the league phase, the Komans produced a balanced campaign and concluded the stage fourth in the table with a record of 3 wins, 4 draws and 3 losses (3–4–3), advancing to the knockout round. The club’s run ended in the semi-finals, where they were eliminated by Calicut FC ^[8] .

Players

First-team squad

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. Nation Player 26 GK   IND Aaryan Saroha(on loan from East Bengal) 99 GK   IND Sreeraj Rajeev 19 DEF   IND Shinu R 66 GK   IND Femin Antony 01 GK   IND Satyajit Bordoloi 15 DF   IND Abdul Badish C. 4 DF   IND Akhil J. Chandran 32 DF   BRA Filipe Alves 55 DF   IND Mohamed Sanooth 93 DF   IND Mohammed Sarif Khan 12 DF   IND K. P. Sharath 19 DF   IND Shinu Rimon 30 MF   IND P. M. Akshay 08 MF   IND Bibin Boban

No. Pos. Nation Player 18 FW   IND Muhammed Ashar 37 MF   IND Manoj M. 10 MF   BRA Patrick Mota 29 MF   IND Ragav Gupta 06 MF   IND Rohen Singh 9 FW   BRA Autemar Bispo 33 FW   BRA Paulo Victor 27 FW   IND Mohammed Shafi 16 FW   IND Shihad Nelliparamban 17 FW   IND T. M. Vishnu 28 FW   IND Khalid Roshan 11 FW   IND Vignesh Maria 7 FW   BRA Ronald Makalysten 23 DEF   IND Shanid Valan 17 MF   IND Sharon S

Technical Staff

Role	Name	Country	Ref.
Head Coach	James McAloon	England	[9]
Team Manager	Natvarlaal Naik	India
Assistant Team Manager	Niranjan S	India
Assistant Coach	Kali Alaudeen	India
Goalkeeping Coach	Balaji Narasimhan	India
S&C Coach/Performance Analyst	Fintan Lane	Australia	[10]

Associated Club

Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas

References

1. "Super League Kerala: Franchisees of inaugural edition announced". Deccan Herald. 12 May 2024. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
2. "Kombans show their might at home, beat Thrissur 2-0. They reached Semi Final against Forca Kochi, but eventual lost by 2-1". The Times of India. 16 September 2024. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
3. "Mahesh Bhupathi, Travancore princess and former Benfica player among franchise owners in Super League Kerala". The Hindu. 10 May 2024. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
4. "Kombans to play at CSN Stadium". The Times of India. 12 July 2024. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
5. "Thiruvananthapuram Kombans to fly to Goa for training, to play FC Calicut on September 10". The New Indian Express. 29 August 2024. Retrieved 29 August 2024.
6. "Kombans to play at CSN Stadium". The Times of India. 2024-07-12. ISSN   0971-8257 . Retrieved 2025-10-05.
7. Service, Express News (2024-09-25). "Same game, same principles across the world, says Komban's coach". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 2025-10-05.
8. "Super League Kerala: Gani scores winner as Calicut beat Kombans to enter final". Super League Kerala: Gani scores winner as Calicut beat Kombans to enter final. Retrieved 2025-10-05.
9. Service, Express News (2025-10-04). "Kombans FC announce final squad for Super League, unveil jersey". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 2025-10-05.
10. Service, Express News (2025-10-04). "Kombans FC announce final squad for Super League, unveil jersey". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 2025-10-05.