FC Pune City (Marathi :एफ सी पुणे सिटी) is an Indian Super League football franchise based in Pune, Maharashtra that began play in October 2014 during the inaugural season of the Indian Super League.[2] The team is owned and operated by Bollywood actor Hrithik Roshan, Wadhawan Group and Italian football club ACF Fiorentina.[3][4][5]
History
In early 2014, it was announced that the All India Football Federation, the national federation for football in India, and IMG-Reliance would be accepting bids for ownership of eight of nine selected cities for the upcoming Indian Super League, an eight-team franchise league modeled along the lines of the Indian Premier League cricket tournament.[6] On 13 April 2014, it was announced that Salman Khan and the Wadhawan Group had won the bidding for the Pune franchise.[2] Later due to issues of sponsorships and endorsements, Salman Khan opted to move out from FC Pune City and Hrithik Roshan came in as the co-owner of the club.
On 30 July 2014, the CEO of the club Gaurav Modwel announced the signing of David Trezeguet as their marquee player.[7] Kostas Katsouranis signed for the FC Pune City on 29 September 2014 and Kostas became the first player to have played in the FIFA World Cup 2014 and to participate in the ISL.[8] On 25 October 2014, after failing to secure the transfer of the Ex-Chelsea winger Adrian Mutu, Pune City signed the talent from the school of Ajax, John Goossens.
The team played their first ever Indian Super League match on 14 October 2014, away to Delhi Dynamos FC at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, New Delhi in a 0-0 draw. On Oct 18, 2014 at DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai with an attendance of 28,000, FC Pune City suffered their first loss of the ISL with a score of 5-0.
On October 26 2014 at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex with an attendance of 7,517, FC Pune City got their first win with a final score of 2-0 against FC Goa. The Hero of the Match award was given to Kostas Katsouranis as he scored the first ever official goal for FC Pune City, while the second goal was scored by the club's marquee player and captain David Trezeguet.
On 30 October 2014 at the home stadium with an attendance: of 8,227, the club suffered a defeat with a scoreline of 1-2 against Kerala Blasters in spite of David Trezeguet scoring the first goal for FC Pune City in 15th minute. On 3 November 2014 again playing at the home stadium with an attendance of 7,647, the club showed great spirit against NorthEast United FC and John Goossens gave the win with a goal in the 88th minute with a wonderful attempt by Dudu Omagbemi which bound from the bar and Goossens headed it in for a goal. The final score was 1-0 and FC Pune City jumped to the 4th Position in the league.[9]
On November 7, 2014 at Salt Lake Stadium with an an attendance of 21,550, the club took on the league topper Atlético de Kolkata. FC Pune City were the underdogs in the game and emerged as the winners with the final score of 1-3 in favour of Pune. The club broke the unbeaten stint of Atlético de Kolkata by defeating them at their home ground. Dudu Omagbemi scored the first goal, Kostas Katsouranis showed his class by scoring a great second goal and picked up the Hero of the Match award and Davide Colomba scored the third goal with a deflected free kick.[10] Kostas Katsouranis and John Goossens were the stars of the match but unfortunately John Goossens suffered a very serious lower rib cage and paraspinal muscle injuries after a collision with his own team´s goalkeeper Arindam Bhattacharya in the 78th minute. This injury cost Pune John Goossens for a minimum 2 matches.[11]
Ownership
Italian club ACF Fiorentina owns a 15% stake in the franchise.[3]
Indian superstar actor Hrithik Roshan co-owns the team.
Players and staff
Current squad
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Coaching staff
Kit manufacturers and shirt sponsors
| Period |
Kit manufacturer |
Shirt sponsor |
| 2014- |
Dida |
DHFL Pramerica Life Insurance |
References
External links
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