F.C. Aboomoslem

Football Club Aboumoslem (Persian: باشگاه فوتبال ابومسلم) is an Iranian football club based in Mashhad, Khorasan. They play in the Azadegan League.

History

Establishment

In 1970 a group of football players from Mashhad decided to create a new football team by the name of Aboumoslem. Most of the players on the team knew each other and were from the Shah Abbasi Tri-way area. They had grown up playing football on the dirt fields of the area. When the Takht Jamshid Cup was created, a qualification tournament for provincial representatives was set up in Isfahan. Another club from Mashhad, named Arya F.C. represented the province of Khorasan but they were not able to make into the Takht Jamshid Cup.

After defeat in the tournament, it was decided that for Khorasan to have a powerful football team, Aboumoslem and Aria must merge together. Three brothers by the names of Ataollah, Asghar and Heshmat Mohajerani helped to merge the clubs, and Aboumoslem was able to make it to the 1975 Takht Jamshid Cup, which was the top football league in Iran before the Iranian revolution. The team originally only wore black, but red was added late on. With the purchase of great players like Asgarkhani, Majid Tashrefi, Masih Masihnia, Alireza Ligarab, Hossein Omidvar and Mahmood Ebrahimzadeh they were able to become the best non-Tehran based club in the league that year. Success was short lived and the team was relegated the next season, staying in the 2nd division until the revolution.

1980s

Like most sporting clubs in Iran, the revolution and the Iran-Iraq War severely limited the team's activities. From 1980 to 1984 the club participated in almost no meaningful competitions. This changed when in late 1984 local and provincial leagues were set up. In 1986 Aboumoslem won the Mashhad city league and the provincial championship in the following season. In the late eighties, Shahdiran Inc. sponsored the team, giving the club a better chance at success. After the war the local and provincial leagues were scrapped in favor of nation-wide leagues.

1990s

Aboumoslem made it to the newly established Azadegan League and participated during the 1990-91 and 1991-92 seasons, but was relegated after only two years. It was during this time that Aboumoslem's most famous player, Khodadad Azizi was discovered. Once relegated the club struggled dramatically, being relegated all the way to the third division, which was a local league. Shahdiran stopped sponsoring the team and was replaced by soft drink company, Khoshgovar. After several seasons in the lower leagues, Aboumoslem finally made it back to the top level of Iranian football, gaining promotion to the Azadegan League during the 1997-98 season. Aboumoslem had been in a poor financial situation that season, as Khoshgovar had stopped being its sponsor. Aboumoslem's only revenue came from advertisements and support from club fans, but surprisingly won promotion with the help of former Aboumoslem player, Akbar Misaghian. Aboumoslem again only stayed in the league for two seasons and was relegated during the 1999-2000 season. Around the same time the club went back to its roots, once again being sponsored by the Iranian police.

IPL

They were promoted again in the next season and debuted in Iran's first fully professional league, the IPL, for the 2001-02 season. They have remained in the IPL since with two 5th place finishes being their best results. During this time the club has shown its skill for finding talented players, with famous Iranian football players such as Reza Enayati, Mojtaba Jabari and Andranik Teymourian all making their names there. After the 2004-05 season Aboumoslem's new sponsor became Iran Khodro.

Recent

In 2006 Khodadad Azizi joined the club as an advisor, beginning his new life in football management after retirement from playing. Akbar Misaghian the club's manager for the past two seasons resigned after the first week of the 2006-07 season due to financial disagreements with management. In January 2007, it became official and Khodadad Azizi was named manager of Aboumoslem. He was sacked less than a year later and replaced by Parviz Mazloomi in October 2007.Which he had a good season with the team and finished the league in the top half of the league but the season after he left the club for a better offer and the club had a very difficult season which they avoided the relegation on the last week and changed 3 head coaches and 3 chairmans but their unstability continued for the 2009-10 season where they finished last and got relegated.

Mashhad Derby

Main articles: Mashhad Derby

Stadium

The club currently plays in Samen Stadium after years of playing in Mashhad's Takhti Stadium. The club recently announced plans to construct their own stadium with the help of the provincial government. The land was awarded to the team during Karim Malahi's time as club chairman. Construction was planned to begin March 2007 in the Elahieh area of Mashhad.^[1]

Fan base

Aboomoslem is the most popular club from Khorasan with huge fan base in Razavi Khorasan Province, North Khorasan, South Khorasan and also in (Herat Province, Afghanistan) where there is a club by the name of Abumoslem Herat F.C.. In Mashhad, her popularity is only rivaled by Tehran's two biggest clubs Esteghlal F.C. and Persepolis F.C., and cross-city rival Payam Mashhad F.C. who has a smaller fan base.

Season-by-season

The table below chronicles the achievements of Aboumoslem in various competitions.

Club chairmen

Club managers

Honours

• Hazfi Cup:

Runner-Up: 2005

• Khorasan Football League

Champions: 1988, 1990

• Mashhad Football League

Champions: 1986

Players

As of September 13, 2011^[2]

First-team squad

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

For recent transfers, see List of Iranian football transfers, summer 2011.

Former players

For details on former players, see Category:Aboomoslem players.

Aboomoslem Players at major tournaments

The following players were selected for their national teams for major tournaments whilst playing for Aboomoslem:

Notable players

This list of former players includes those who received international caps (in bold) while playing for the team, made significant contributions to the team in terms of appearances or goals while playing for the team, or who made significant contributions to the sport either before they played for the team, or after they left. It is clearly not yet complete and all inclusive, and additions and refinements will continue to be made over time.

References

• "(Persian) تاریخچه باشگاه". Official Club Website. http://www.aboumoslem.ir/89/Aboutus.htm. Retrieved 12 October 2006. 

• "(Persian) ابومسلم مشهد". Iranmania.com. http://www.iranmania.com/news/sports/pro_league04_05/teams/Aboumoslem.asp. Retrieved 12 October 2006. 

External links

• Official site
• Official weblog