FC Bengaluru United

Not to be confused with Bengaluru FC.

Football Club Bengaluru United is an Indian professional football club based in Bangalore, Karnataka.^[4] The club competed in 2021 I-League Qualifiers.^[5] Founded in 2018, the club mainly participated in local competitions including Bangalore Super Division, before participating in the I-League 2nd Division for the 2019–20 season.^[6][7]

FC Bengaluru United

Full name	Football Club Bengaluru United^[1]
Short name	FCBU
Founded	2018; 5 years ago (2018)^[2]
Ground	Bangalore Football Stadium
Capacity	8,400
Owner	Gaurav Manchanda^[3]
Head coach	Khalid Jamil
League	Bangalore Super Division
Home colours Away colours Third colours

History

Bengaluru United was founded in 2018 and began playing the Bangalore Super Division for the 2018–19 season.^[8] Their first match was on 25 October 2018 against Kickstart FC where they were defeated 4–2.^[8] The club earned their first victory in their next match on 30 October against South United 3–0. After 13 matches, Bengaluru United finished their first season in fifth place on 23 points, 11 behind Bengaluru FC.^[8]

Prior to the next season, Bengaluru United signed former India international Gouramangi Singh as a first-team coach under Richard Hood.^[9] The team started the Super Division 2019–20 season with a 4–1 victory over ASC.^[10] This time the club finished as runners-up, behind Bengaluru FC on goal difference.^[10]

In January 2020, it was announced that Bengaluru United would participate in the I-League 2nd Division,^[11] India's third tier competition.^[12] The club were placed into Group C,^[4] alongside ARA, FC Kerala, and the reserve teams for Indian Super League clubs Goa, Kerala Blasters, and Mumbai City.^[12][13] Their first match in the national league was on 29 January 2020 against Goa at the Nagoa Ground. A goal from striker Amey Bhatkal gave Bengaluru United a 1–0 victory.^[14] Despite the performance, the COVID-19 pandemic in India managed to postpone the 2nd Division season from being concluded.^[15] The club were in second in the table from eight matches.^[12]

In March 2021, Bengaluru United was crowned champions of the 2020–21 season of the BDFA Super Division League. The club finished atop the points table with 31 points, having won 10 out of their 12 matches.^[16]

“Kudos to our FC Bengaluru United boys who stayed on top of their game and remained steadfast in their commitment right through the league. Credit to all the coaches, support staff and everyone who worked tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure game plans were in place, training sessions were on point and the focus on winning unwavering. I would also like to thank the KSFA for successfully organizing the league in what are undoubtedly unique and challenging circumstances. We had 13 teams participatingand the league was extremely competitive, making it a great experience for players and those who watched the games as well!”

— Gaurav Manchanda, owner of FC Bengaluru United, after the team's historic Bangalore Super Division win.^[17]

Ahead of the 2021–22 I-League Qualifiers, Bengaluru roped in Slovenian Luka Majcen as their third foreigner^[18] after the Trinidadian duo Robert Primus and Daniel Carr.^[19] They began 2021–22 season journey, with a 1–0 win against Central Reserve Police Force at the 2021 Durand Cup,^[20][21][22] but the journey ended after a 4–2 defeat to Mohammedan Sporting in semi-finals.^[23][24]

Bengaluru United retain the BDFA Super Division title, after winning the 2021–22 season, stacking up 13 wins and a draw.^[25][26] In May 2022, the club appointed Khalid Jamil as new head coach.^[27][28]

Kit manufacturers and shirt sponsors

Period	Kit manufacturer	Shirt sponsor
2019—2020	MS Sportswear	The Organic World
2020—2021		Nimida Group^[29]
2021—2022	SIX5SIX^[30]^[31]
2022—present	Hummel^[32]

Stadium

 

New Bengaluru Football Stadium in Karnataka, used as home ground of Bengaluru United.

Bengaluru United plays its home matches of both I-League qualifiers,^[33] and Bangalore Super Division,^[34] at the Bangalore Football Stadium in Bangalore, Karnataka.^[35] The stadium previously had a capacity of nearly 40,000 spectators.^[36][37] Opened in 1971, it currently has artificial turf.

Players

As of 23 March 2021^[38]

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

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK   IND Kunzang Bhutia 3 DF   IND James Singh 4 DF   IND Kingshuk Debnath 5 MF   IND Ashraf Ali Mondal 6 DF   IND Dharmaraj Ravanan (Captain) 13 DF   IND Brandon Green 14 MF   IND Arun Kumar D. 17 MF   IND Yumnam Singh 18 GK   IND Srijith Ramesh - MF   IND Hayden Hadson 15 DF   IND Sanju Pradhan

No. Pos. Nation Player - MF   IND Shitaljit Singh Atom 10 MF   IND Mohammad Asrar Rehbar - FW   IND Ishan Dey 29 FW   IND Naro Hari Shrestha 2 DF   IND Daniel Muthu 27 MF   IND Kiran Sravanan 30 MF   IND Gunashekar Vignesh 33 MF   IND Akhil Praveen 55 GK   IND Ahmed Asfar 72 FW   IND Jaison Jordon Vaz 93 DF   IND Hardik Bhatt 96 MF   IND Aditya Mohan 33 DF   IND George D'Souza

Coaching staff

As of 9 May 2021

Position	Name
Head coach	Khalid Jamil
Assistant coach	Jhon Raj
Goalkeeping coach	Mihir Sawant
Strength and conditioning coach	Prajwal Bhat
Physiotherapist	Levin Vinod

Statistics and records

Season-by-season

As of 19 July 2020

Season	League									Finals	Cup	Asia	Top Scorer
	Division	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	Pts	Position				Player	Goals
2018–19	Bangalore Super Division	13	6	5	2	21	12	23	5th	—	—	—	—
2019–20	Bangalore Super Division	13	7	5	1	23	7	26	3rd	—	—	—	—
2019–20	I-League 2nd Division	8	4	2	2	12	6	14	2nd	—	—	—	—

Affiliated clubs

The following club(s) is/are currently associated with FC Bengaluru United:

•   Sevilla FC (2021–present)^{[39][40][41][42]}

Notable players

See also: Category:FC Bengaluru United players

Past and present internationals

The following Bengaluru United players have been capped at full international level. Years in brackets indicate their spells at the club.

•   Robert Primus (2020–2021)^[19]
•   Daniel Clive Carr (2021)^[19]
•   Mohamad Kdouh (2022–present)^[43]

Partnership

In 2021, FC Bengaluru United and La Liga side Sevilla FC have formalised their agreement to collaborate for the next five years.^[44] With this partnership agreement, Sevilla FC look to strengthen their presence in the Indian football market, one of the fastest growing markets in the world.^[45] They will also explore opportunities to establish shared football schools. Sevilla FC will assist to the Indian club in various aspects, sports management, data analysis, talent spotting, player development and performance optimisation and the use of sports technology.^[46]

For Bengaluru United, owned by Gaurav Manchanda, this represents an opportunity to learn from vast sporting experience of Sevilla.^[44] As part of the agreement, fans will be able to see FC Bengaluru United as well as their academy players in traditional white and red colours of Sevilla from the start of the 2021–22 season in the I-League 2nd Division.^[47]

Women's team

In March 2022, FC Bengaluru united marked their foray into women's football with the launch of their Women's KSFA B Division team.^[48] The team was launched on 8 March on Women's day and they represents the best in local talent and marks an important milestone in the growth and development of women's football in the state.

“The launch of the IWL marked an important step in the development of women's football in the country.”

John Kenneth Raj, Technical director of FC Bengaluru United, after launching the teams women's side.^[48]

Honours

League

• I-League 2nd Division
  • Third place (1): 2019–20^[49]
• Bangalore Super Division
  • Champions (2): 2020–21,^[50] 2021–22

See also

• List of football clubs in India

References

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External links

• FC Bengaluru United at Soccerway
• FC Bengaluru United at the-aiff.com
• Team profile at Global Sports Archive
• FC Bengaluru United on Twitter
• FC Bengaluru United on Facebook