Churchill Brothers FC Goa

Indian association football club From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Churchill Brothers FC Goa

Churchill Brothers Football Club Goa (simply known as Churchill Brothers) is an Indian professional football club based in Margao, Goa,[2][3] that competes in the I-League,[4][5] alongside the Goa Professional League (reserves).[6][7][8] Founded in 1988, the club usually participated in the National Football League,[9][10] then top tier of the Indian football league system.[11]

Quick Facts Full name, Nickname(s) ...
Churchill Brothers
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Full nameChurchill Brothers Football Club Goa
Nickname(s)The Red Machines
Short nameCB
CBFC
Founded1988; 37 years ago (1988) (as Varca Club)[1]
GroundFatorda Stadium
Tilak Maidan Stadium
Raia Panchayat Ground
Capacity19,000
5,000
8,000
OwnerValanka Alemao
Head coachDimitris Dimitriou
LeagueI-League
2023–24I-League, 7th of 13
Current season
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The club has won the I-League title twice and has secured a position among the top three teams on nine other occasions in the national league.[12][13] It has also won eight Goa League Champions Cups, three Durand Cups,[14][15] and a Federation Cup.[16][17]

Churchill Brothers emerged as fourth ranked Indian team, and 648 universally, in the international rankings of clubs during the first ten years of the 21st century (2001–2010), issued by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics in 2011.[18]

History

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1988–2009

Churchill Brothers FC were founded in 1988 as Varca Club.[19][20] After one season, they were renamed Brothers Sporting Club.[21] Later on they were bought out by Churchill Braz Alemao and renamed as Churchill Brothers FC and emerged as runners-up of the National Football League thrice: 1996–97, 1999–2000 and 2001–02.[22][23][24] In the 1997–98 Asian Club Championship, Churchill Brothers went on to represent India. But, they had a forgetful debut outing as the Goan outfit was knocked out in the very first round by Vietnamese club Dong Thap with a 2–1 aggregate loss.[25] In 1998, Churchill roped in Bassim Yonan, the first Iraqi player in India.[26] Noted Scottish manager Danny McLennan trained the club in 1999–2000 season.[27]

After the take over by Churchill, the club went on to win the Durand Cup in 2007, and the 2008–09 I-League,[28][29] Durand Cup in 2009,[30] IFA Shield in the same year. In 2008, Nigerian World Cupper Emeka Ezeugo was appointed club's head coach.[31] They also emerged as runners-up of the 2007–08 I-League,[32][33] the inaugural season.[34] Through their I-League win Churchill Brothers FC were able to play in the 2010 Asian Champions League qualifiers which they lost and moved to the 2010 AFC Cup. During the AFC Cup they won two games against Al-Hilal Al-Sahili and finished runners-up in their group, advancing to the next round. Finally, they were defeated 1–2 to Al-Qadsia at the Mohammed Al-Hamad Stadium.[35]

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Odafe Onyeka Okolie, Churchill Brothers' all-time highest goalscorer (with 128 league goals).

2010–2019

Churchill Brothers was managed by Singaporean Vincent Subramaniam for the 2010–11 season.[36] The club went the rest of the season with Croatian Drago Mamić, who helped them win the IFA Shield that year.[37][38]

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Manuel Gomes as the manager of Churchill Brothers in 2011

On 9 June 2011, Churchill Brothers announced they have signed former Portugal national football team assistant coach Manuel Gomes as a permanent coach.[39][40] His start proved to be successful as the club captured the 2011 Durand Cup for the third time in their history in October 2011, defeating Prayag United 5–4.[41][42] However, on 15 February 2012, it was announced that Gomes had resigned and that former coach Carlos Roberto Pereira would be brought in on a caretaker basis.[43][44]

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Churchill's Brazilian striker Beto (in No 10, white) in action at the 2011 Federation Cup.

Then on 13 July 2012, it was announced that Mariano Dias had been signed to become their new full-time head coach.[45] After his first season in charge, Dias managed to lead Churchill Brothers to the I-League championship,[46][47][48] their second domestic title in the history.[49][50]

After the end of 2013–14 I-League season, Churchill finished in twelfth position with 25 points in 24 matches and was evicted from I-League for not fulfilling the Asian Football Confederation's club licensing criteria.[51][52] In that season, they clinched the 2013–14 Indian Federation Cup title.[53] In November 2017, it was announced that Ukrainian Mykola Shevchenko joined Churchill as their head coach.[54][55] His first game as a manager occurred on 2 December 2017, when Churchill took on Shillong Lajong, resulting in a 2–0 loss. His stint came to an end as he was sacked from the position.[56] Churchill then roped in Joseph Afusi of Nigeria as technical director,[57] but were relegated at the end of the 2017–18 season, with just 17 points from 18 games.[58] However, their position was reinstated by the AIFF, after a successful appeal by the club.[59]

In August 2018, Romanian manager Petre Gigiu was appointed head coach.[60] His first competitive game was on 28 October 2018 in Churchill's opening match against the reigning champions, Minerva Punjab. The match ended in a 0–0 draw.[61] At the end of the 2018–19 I-League season, they finished on fourth position with 34 points.[62][63][64]

2020–present

In September 2020, Churchill appointed Fernando Santiago Varela as head coach.[65][66] Under his guidance, Churchill emerged as the runners-up of the 2020–21 I-League with 29 points.[67][68][69][70] Although Churchill managed a win against RoundGlass Punjab in their last match, Gokulam Kerala FC were crowned champions courtesy of a better head-to-head record.[71][72]

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Churchill Brothers players (in red) in action against Sporting Goa during a local league match at the Duler Stadium in Mapusa in 2023

Ahead of the 2021–22 I-League, Churchill roped in their first ever Guinean player Sekou Sylla,[73] and Romanian Petre Gigiu returned to the club as head coach.[74] They finished the season in fourth place.[75][76] The club later in November, reached final of Baji Rout Cup in Odisha,[77] finished as runners-up after defeat to Rajasthan United.[78] They later took part in 2023 Indian Super Cup in Kerala in April,[79] and 2024 Bhausaheb Bandodkar Memorial Trophy along with foreign teams like Brisbane Roar and Defensa y Justicia participated.[80][81][82] In November, the club appointed Cypriot manager Dimitris Dimitriou as head coach.[83]

Crest, colours & kits

Crest

In 2011, a new red and black coloured crest was introduced.[84] The crest of Churchill Brothers was originally in green and yellow, that had a football on green grass with yellow rays representing the sun's rays, with initials of the club name.[85]

Colours

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Churchill Brothers player Jayanth Kumar in club's red coloured kit at their home ground in Vasco.

The present colours of Churchill Brothers kit is red for home matches[86][87] and blue for away matches,[88] but before the brand new crest the home colours were white and the away colours were red.

Kit manufacturers and shirt sponsors

More information Period, Kit manufacturer ...
Period Kit manufacturer Shirt sponsor
1988—2011 None Churchill Brothers[89][90]
2011—2017 Nivia
2017—2018 Faisports[91]
2018—2023 Nivia[92]
2023—2024 Trak-Only[93]
2024— King Sports
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Ownership and nickname

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Churchill Alemao (in left), founder and owner of Churchill Brothers.

Churchill Brothers is owned and led for decades by Goan entrepreneur and politician Churchill Alemao, who served as both the president of Goa Football Association and Chief Minister of the state.[94][95] His daughter Valanka Alemao is current CEO of the club.[96][97]

Churchill Brothers is predominantly nicknamed the "Red Machine".[98][99][100][101]

Stadiums

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The Fatorda Stadium on a matchday
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The Tilak Maidan Stadium on a matchday

Since the I-League began, Churchill Brothers have always played mainly at the Fatorda Stadium in the South Goan city of Margao,[102][103] along with other Goan clubs (Dempo, Salgaocar, Sporting Goa and Vasco).[104][105] They also used Tilak Maidan Stadium for both the I-League and the Goa Professional League matches.[106]

During the 2012–13 season, Churchill Brothers temporarily played at the Duler Stadium[107] in Mapusa,[108][109][110] Goa, while the Fatorda Stadium was being renovated for the 2013 Lusophony Games and the Tilak Maidan was being renovated up to the AFC standards.[111]

During the 2013 AFC Cup, Churchill Brothers used Shri Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Pune as their home ground.[112] In 2022, the club moved to GMC Athletic Stadium in Bambolim.[113]

Rivalries

Churchill Brothers has a major rivalry with their fellow Goan side Dempo, popularly known as the "Goan Derby".[114][115][116]

They have also rivalries with other two Goan sides, Sporting Clube de Goa[117][118][119] and Salgaocar,[120][121] whom they faced in I-League,[122] and currently in Goa Professional League.[123]

Players

First-team squad

As of February 2025

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

More information No., Pos. ...
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Personnel

Current technical staff

More information Position, Name ...
Position Name
Head coach Cyprus Dimitris Dimitriou
Assistant coach India Saran Singh
Goalkeeping coach India Nikidesh Kalari Vattath
Physio India Anandu S. Kumar
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Honours

League

Cup

Regional

Performance in AFC competitions

1997–98: 1st round
2002–03: Qualifying round 3
2010: Qualifying play-off
2010: Round of 16
2013: Group stage
2014: Round of 16

Team records

Seasonal records

More information Season, Division ...
Season Division Teams Position Attendance Federation Cup/Super Cup Durand Cup AFC Champions League AFC Cup
2016–17 I-League 10 6th 2,560 Group stage DNP DNP DNP
2017–18 I-League 10 9th 2,921 Round of 16 DNP DNP DNP
2018–19 I-League 11 4th 3,387 DNP DNP DNP
2019–20 I-League 11 8th 3,062 DNP DNP DNP
2020–21 I-League 11 2nd - DNP DNP DNP
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Key
  • Tms. = Number of teams
  • Pos. = Position in league
  • Attendance/G = Average league attendance

Transfer record

Goalscoring record

  • Highest goalscorer of the Indian NFL (with Churchill Brothers): Ghana Philip Mensah (1998–99), Ghana Yusif Yakubu (2001–02; 2002–03).[23][151]

Other records

Team award(s)

Seasons

More information Season, Division ...
Results of league and cup competitions by season
Season Division P W D L F A Pts Pos Federation Cup Super Cup Asia Round reached Name Goals
League Top goalscorer
1996–97 Div 1 19 10 6 3 27 16 39 2nd
1997–98 Div 1 18 4 7 7 20 26 19 9th
1998–99 Div 1 20 7 8 5 27 22 29 3rd
1999–2000 Div 1 22 12 5 5 36 17 41 2nd
2000–01 Div 1 22 10 6 6 32 25 36 3rd
2001–02 Div 1 22 12 6 4 44 19 42 2nd
2002–03 Div 1 22 10 7 5 33 22 37 5th AFC
Champions
League
QR3
2003–04 Div 1 22 10 6 6 29 24 36 4th    
2004–05 Div 1 22 5 8 9 23 33 23 9th    
2005–06 Div 2                
2006–07 Div 1 18 7 8 3 30 23 29 4th    
2007–08 IL 18 11 3 4 40 22 36 2nd QF Nigeria Odafe Onyeka Okolie 22
2008–09[156] IL 22 13 7 2 53 23 46 1st SF Nigeria Odafe Onyeka Okolie 24
2009–10 IL 26 11 10 5 50 35 43 2nd SF AFC Cup R16 Nigeria Odafe Onyeka Okolie 22
2010–11 IL 26 14 8 4 57 31 50 4th SF Nigeria Odafe Onyeka Okolie 25
2011–12 IL 26 14 6 6 47 28 48 3rd GS Gabon Henry Antchouet 18
2012–13 IL 26 16 7 3 56 22 55 1st SF AFC Cup GS Gabon Henry Antchouet 14
2013–14 IL 24 6 7 11 25 37 25 12th W AFC Cup R16 India Balwant Singh 10
2018–19 IL 20 9 7 4 35 23 34 4th - - - Trinidad and Tobago Willis Plaza 21
2019–20 IL 15 6 2 7 23 21 20 8th
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1st or WWinners
2nd or RURunners-up
Promoted
Relegated
Top scorer in division

Managerial history

Notable players

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Perspective

World Cup players

Foreign internationals

   

Other notable players

Other departments

Women's team

The club has a women's section, that competes in Goa Women's League, and won the league title in 2022–23 season.[258][259][260] They also participated in Indian Women's League.[261][262] Club's midfielder Cia Ryzella Almeida was honoured with "Women's Player of the Year" award by Goa Football Association (GFA) in June 2023.[263]

Honours

Youth team

Churchill Brothers' U17 youth men's team competes in the Hero Youth League.[264] Club's U19 team[265][266][267] reached championship round in 2011 season.[268] Their U15 team took part in Nike Premier Cup.[269] Club's U20 team competed in I-League U20.[270]

See also

Footnotes

  1. Fourth oldest football tournament, organized by the IFA (W.B.), and played between the local clubs of West Bengal and other invited ones.
  2. Sporting Clube de Goa and Churchill Brothers were declared joint winners of GPL 2019–20 season as the 13 remaining games could not be played due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

References

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