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Dempo
Dempo Sports Club.svg
Full name Dempo Sports Club
Nickname(s) Golden Eagles, The Whites
Founded 1968; 56 years ago (1968)
Ground Nagoa Ground
Ground Capacity 10,000
Owner Dempo Group
Head coach Samir Naik
League
  • I-League 2
  • Goa Professional League
Third colours

Dempo Sports Club (simply known as Dempo) is an Indian professional football club based in Panaji, Goa. The club currently competes in the I-League 2, the third tier of the Indian football league system, and the Goa Professional League. Dempo is owned and sponsored by the Dempo Mining Corporation Limited. Known popularly as "The Whites" and "Golden Eagles", the club has been a constant participant in the National football championships, and gained immense popularity in the last four decades of its existence. The club have previously competed in the I-League.

Dempo became the first Indian football club that reached the Semi-final of the AFC Cup tournament in 2008. The club has won several accolades and honors. In the 2004–05 season, the club won its maiden National Football League title. They won the league again in the 2006–07 season, and followed it with the three I-League triumphs in 2007–08 in its inaugural version, and then in 2009–10, and again in 2011–12, making them one of the most successful clubs on the national front with 5 National league titles; joint with Kolkata giants Mohun Bagan as the only teams to have the honour on 5 occasions.

The club has also won 14 Goa League Champions Cups, 4 Rovers Cups, 2 Indian Super Cups, Federation Cup in 2004, and Durand Cup in 2006. Dempo was the first Goan club to win Rovers cup. It also won the inaugural edition of AWES Cup in 2017 and won multiple times in Goa Police Cup. Dempo emerged as fifth ranked Indian team, and 711 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. Club's youth and academy teams competed in the Youth League of India.

History

Foundation and early history (1960s–1980)

Dempo Sports Club began as "Bicholim Football Club", which was a top First Division league side in the 1960s. Football lovers in the country remember the Bicholim Football Club as one of the most talented football club in the country. Players including Subhash Sinari, Bernard Olivera, Tolentino Serrao, Bhaskar, Kalidas Gaad, Manohar Pednekar, Bhai Pednekar, Ganpat Gaonkar and Pandurang Gaonkar are still remembered to the Bicholim Football Club on a completely different standard compared to the other sports club existing at that moment. Bicholim Sports Club was later adopted by Dempo Souza in 1967 and was renamed Dempo Souza Sports Club. Even then the team remained one of the strongest team in the country with players like Eustaquio, Dass, Balaguru, Olavo, Colaco, Inacio, Felix Barreto, Thapa, Ramesh Redkar, Socrates Carvalho, Sadanand Asnodkar and Tulsidas Alornekar. In 1969, the team stood as the first runner-up in the Vasco Sports Club in the Senior Division League.

The Dempo Souza Sports Club finally became Dempo Sports Club, after Dempo bought Mr Michael D'Souza's stake in the Dempo Souza enterprise. However, Dempo Sports Club prospered when Vasantrao Dempo, the chairman of the House of Dempo, extended his benefaction to football team in an extensive manner. Dempo then came at par with the other business houses, like Salgaocar, Agencia Commercial Maritima, Shantilal and Sesa Goa who had their own teams. Dempo Sports Club started out as Dempo Souza Football Club in 1961 and was taken over when they made the company their own Dempo Corporation around that time. The club was started by Michael deSouza and the logo and colours that the club wears currently was what he had chosen for the team. The club won their first Goan Senior League title in 1972. The club then won their first ever national pan-India tournament in 1975 by winning the Rovers Cup. British coach Bob Bootland took charge of Dempo in 1978 and changed the way India looked at its football with a revolutionary 4–3–3 style of play. The club then won the Rovers Cup again in 1978. The club defended their title one year later in 1979. Their first double. Dempo clinched Stafford Challenge Cup titles in 1975 and 1979.

Gaining prominence (1980–2000)

Dempo then entered their "Golden-Age" during the 1980s. Dempo won a host of small cups and they also won the Rovers Cup again in 1986 by beating historic club Mohun Bagan. The club also won the Goan League in 1986 and 1987.

Priyaranjan Dasmunsi with the players of the Dempo S C and Salgaonkar during the inauguration of the ONGC I-League Tournament, the first professional football tournament in India at the Nehru Stadium at Margao, Goa
Players of Dempo SC (in blue) during their debut match at the 2007–08 I-League, against Salgaocar FC.
Baljit Saini of JCT against Dempo I-League at Guru Nanak Stadium Ludhiana
Dempo SC players (in blue) in action against JCT Mills, during the 2008–09 I-League at Guru Nanak Stadium in Ludhiana.

The club then went on to participate in their first international tournament named POMIS Cup in Malé, and achieved runner-up positions twice in 1991 and 1992. The club then won the Rovers Cup again by beating Mohun Bagan again and were then one of the original 12 teams in the first National Football League in 1996. The club then got relegated in 1999–2000 but got promoted the very next season.

Later years (2000–present)

Dempo won their first NFL championship in 2004. They also won the last NFL season. Later, they clinched Durand Cup title, thrashing JCT Mills by 2–0 in the 2006 final. Dempo then won the maiden I-League season in 2007–08. As a result of this title win, Dempo played in AFC competition in 2008 during the 2008 AFC Cup, and ended their campaign as semi-finalist. They again won the league in 2009–10 and 2011–12.

In 2011, Dempo signed Trinidadian and Tobago international Densill Theobald as marquee player, who represented his nation at the 2006 FIFA World Cup. After the 2012–13 season, where Dempo finished in 5th place, they parted ways with their most successful coach Armando Colaco, with whom they had won 5 League titles. They appointed Arthur Papas, who had previously been the head coach of the Indian U23 Men's National Team. Dempo finished their 2013–14 campaign with a 4th-place finish.

Joy Feraro During Mumbai FC VS Dempo SC Game
Joy Ferrao of Dempo SC in action against Mumbai FC during the 2014–15 I-League.

In March 2015, after losing their final match to fellow Goan and relegation threatened club Salgaocar 2–0, they got relegated for the first time from I-league and later participated in I-League 2nd Division. In 2015–16 I-League Second Division season, they clinched title. Then, the club was hit by numerous injuries, which had ruined their season in the top division. Before the start of the 2016–17 season, Dempo, along with fellow Goan clubs, Salgaocar FC and Sporting Clube, announced their withdrawal from the I-League. After their withdrawal from I-League, Dempo participated later editions of the I-League 2nd Division, the second tier of Indian football league system.

Dempo SC players at the Goa Police Cup final in November 2023, photographed in Panjim
Dempo SC players at the Goa Police Cup final in November 2023

In the 2021–22 Goa Professional League season, Samir Naik managed Dempo end decade long wait, and clinched the title in style. In February–March 2023, the club participated in Stafford Challenge Cup in Bangalore. In July 2023, Dempo roped in Scottish-Indian football pundit and manager Pradhyum Reddy as club's CEO. The club later won GFA Charity Cup in August 2023, beating Sporting Goa in final. In that month of the same year, Dempo gained an I-League 3 spot to compete in the inaugural edition. In that edition, they reached play-offs, finished second and secured promotion to I-League 2.

Crest & colours

Dempo logo
Dempo's crest from 1968 to 2010

The Dempo Sports Club crest is the official logo for Dempo Corporations sports clubs that it owns. The logo includes the words Goa (name of the state Dempo is based in) and Dempo Sports Club (team name). The logo also includes a picture of a golden bird in the middle of the crest.

The official colours of Dempo Sports Club are blue and white. Ever since their creation Dempo's home colours have always involved blue, mainly with the shirts while the shorts were always either blue or black. The away colours were always all white but then in 2011 when Dempo unveiled their away kit the shirt had black stripes on it. The shorts however remain the same.

Calum Angus - Mumbai FC 0-1 Dempo
English centre-back Calum James Angus in away kit of Dempo in 2015

Ahead of the club's 2020–21 football season, the Golden Eagles introduced the new home and away jerseys to show solidarity towards the health workers in Goa. The team announced that they will proudly bear the words "Thank You Goa's Covid Warriors" on their Home and Away jerseys.

Rivalries

Dempo has a major rivalry with their fellow Goan side Churchill Brothers, popularly known as "Goan Derby".

They also have rivalries with other two Goan sides Sporting Clube de Goa, and Salgaocar, whom they faced in I-League and face in Goa Professional League.

Stadium

Fatorda Stadium
Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium

Dempo SC has used Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Margao for its home matches in the domestic and regional leagues, which has a capacity of 19,000 spectators.

Fatorda stadium exterior 1
Exterior of the stadium

Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium opened in 1989 and Dempo SC has been using it for all its I-League matches. The stadium also served as club's home ground in continental tournaments including the AFC Cup.

Nagoa Ground in Mapusa became the home ground of Dempo during the 2012–13 I-League, alongside Tilak Maidan. The stadium got its AstroTurf in 2012 as part of FIFA's Win in India with India program.

Training grounds

Sircaim was used as a destination for the training of Dempo, the other being at Sanquelim. The Sesa Football Academy Ground is located at Sircaim and they used it for pre-season training from 2014 to 2015.

Ella Academy Ground

A 48,450-square-meter training complex in Old Goa, the Ella Academy, was opened in 2017 by Dempo. Ella Academy Ground has also been used as the home ground for the club's both senior and junior teams.

Ownership and finances

At the moment Dempo Sports Club's main sponsor and owner is Dempo Mining Corporation Limited. The club has been owned by Dempo since their creation. As part of the sponsorship from Dempo the club also named itself Dempo Sports Club and is classed as an institutional club in that case.

The finances given to the club are very limited which meant that the club was forced to spend less on infrastructure and proven players and spend more on local youth development.

Kit manufacturers and shirt sponsors

Period Kit manufacturer Shirt sponsor
2006–2011 none Dempo
2011–2014 Nike
2014–2015 Adidas
2015–2016 7070 Sports
2016–present Shiv Naresh

Players

First-team squad

No. Position Player
1 India GK Antonio Dylan
2 India DF Brian Faria
5 India MF Pruthvesh Pednekar
6 India MF Ariston Costa
7 India FW Stephen Satarkar
8 India MF Desmon Pereira
9 India FW Sheldon Pereira
11 India MF Vasim Inamdar
12 India DF Vieri Colaco
13 India FW Shubam Rawat
14 India MF Chinkhosiam Dimngel
15 India DF Saesh Bagkar
16 India MF Vinay Vijay
17 India MF Sanwil Dcosta
No. Position Player
18 India MF Tongminsei Kipgen
20 India MF Meuton Fernandes
21 India DF Darell Masceranhas
22 India MF Seigoumang Doungle
23 India MF Nestor Dias
24 India MF Necio Fernandes
26 India FW Aron Barretto
27 India MF Sheldon Fernandes
30 India GK Wellyster Mendes
31 India GK Myrick Hilario
37 India DF Mohamed Ali
38 India MF Laximanrao Rane

Technical staff

As of 8 November 2016
Position Name
CEO Scotland Pradhyum Reddy
Head coach India Samir Naik
Goalkeeping coach India Richard Sanchez

Managers

Zico
Armando Colaco (center) with Brazilian football legend Zico (left) at the East Bengal club tent in Kolkata. Colaco guided Dempo to win five national league titles.

The club hired their first professional manager in 2000, Armando Colaco; he remained with the club until the end of season 2012–13 and gave five domestic league titles. In June 2013, the club signed Greek-Australian manager Arthur Papas who was already working in India as the Indian U23 National Team coach.

Statistics

Only competitive matches are counted. Wins, losses and draws are results at the final whistle; the results of penalty shoot-outs are not counted.

!Name Nationality From To Honours Ref.
Bob Bootland  ENG 1977 1983 Rovers Cup (1978), Durand Cup (1983)
Armando Colaco  India June 2000 2013 I-League (2007–08, 2009–10, 2011–12), Indian Super Cup (2008, 2010), Federation Cup (2004), Durand Cup (2006)
Arthur Papas  Australia June 2013 March 2015
Trevor Morgan  England March 2015 November 2015 N/A
Mauricio Afonso  India November 2015 July 2017 N/A
Samir Subash Naik  India July 2017 till date Goa Professional League (2022–23)

Notable players

Foreign internationals

Carlos Hernández - Mumbai FC 0-1 Dempo
Costa Rican international Carlos Hernández, who appeared in 2006 FIFA World Cup, with Dempo in 2015.
  • The players below had senior international cap(s) for their respective countries. Players whose name is listed, represented their countries before or after playing for Dempo SC.
  • Uzbekistan Sergey Andreyev (2002–2003)
  • Trinidad and Tobago Densill Theobald (2011–2012)
  • Australia Simon Colosimo (2013–2014)
  • Sri Lanka Kasun Jayasuriya (2000–2001)
  • Sri Lanka Channa Ediri Bandanage (2002–2003)
  • Indonesia Beto Gonçalves (2010)
 
  • Afghanistan Zohib Islam Amiri (2014–2015)
  • Northern Cyprus Billy Mehmet (2013)
  • Liberia Johnny Menyongar (2013)
  • Costa Rica Carlos Hernández (2015)
  • Liberia Sunday Seah (2003–2004)
  • Nepal Upendra Man Singh (1999–2000)
  • Ghana Stephen Offei (2012)

Other notable players

  • Nigeria Ranti Martins (2004–2012) – all-time top goalscorer for Dempo (with 146 league goals in 164 matches)
  • India Sunil Chhetri (2009–2010) – all-time top goalscorer of the India national team

Affiliated club(s)

The following clubs were affiliated with Dempo SC:

  • Denmark FC Midtjylland (2011–2012)
  • India FC Goa (2014–2016)

Performance in AFC competitions

2009: Play-off round
2011: Qualifying play-off
2005: Group Stage
2006: Group Stage
2008: Semi-final
2009: Round of 16
2011: Round of 16

Team records

  • Most individual goals in a match of I-League: 7 by Nigeria Ranti Martins – Dempo vs Air India in 2010–11.
  • Maximum number of goals in one edition of I-League: 32 by Nigeria Ranti Martins, in 2011–12.
  • Biggest winning margin in I-League: Dempo SC vs Air India 14–0 in 2010–11.
  • Most goals scored in a match: 14, Dempo SC (14) vs Air India (0), 2010–11.
  • Most number of goals scored by a team in one edition of I-League: 63 in 26 matches, in 2010–11.
  • Retired number: 10 – Brazil Cristiano Junior (2004)
  • Most individual goals in a single match in I-League: 6 by Nigeria Ranti Martins, Dempo vs Air India, in 2010–11.
  • Most successful team in the NFL/I-League: 4 titles.

Honours

Widely considered one of the most successful clubs in the Indian football circuit due to their domestic exploits, the club also holds the distinct honour of becoming the first Indian club to reach the Semi-Finals of the AFC Cup in 2008.

Domestic

League

  • NFL/I-League
    • Champions (5): 2004–05, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2009–10, 2011–12
    • Runners-up (1): 2003–04
    • Third place (1): 2010–11
  • NFL II/I-League 2
    • Champions (2): 2001–02, 2015–16
  • I-League 3
    • Runners-up (1): 2023–24
  • Goa Football League
    • Champions (16): 1972, 1974, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1984, 1987, 1988, 1994, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2021–22, 2022–23
    • Runners-up (3): 1984–85, 2006–07, 2019–20

Cup

  • Federation Cup
    • Champions (1): 2004
    • Runners-up (5): 1996, 2001, 2008, 2012, 2014–15
  • Indian Super Cup
    • Champions (2): 2008, 2010
    • Runners-up (3): 2005, 2007, 2009
  • Durand Cup
    • Champions (1): 2006
  • Rovers Cup
    • Champions (4): 1975, 1979, 1980, 1986
    • Runners-up (1): 1989–90
  • Bordoloi Trophy
    • Champions (2): 1982, 1983
    • Runners-up (1): 1981
  • Nizam Gold Cup
    • Champions (1): 1978
  • Scissors Cup
    • Champions (3): 1992, 1994, 1996
  • Sait Nagjee Football Tournament
    • Runners-up (2): 1971, 1995
  • Bandodkar Gold Trophy
    • Champions (8): 1976, 1978, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1990, 1991
    • Runners-up (4): 1971, 1973, 1975, 2016
  • Goa Police Cup
    • Champions (1): 2005
    • Runners-up (2): 1999, 2021
  • Stafford Challenge Cup
    • Champions (2): 1975, 1979
    • Runners-up (1): 1986

Continental

Invitational

  • Maldives POMIS International Cup
    • Runners-up (2): 1991, 1992

Other honours

  • Sher-I-Kashmir Gold Cup
    • Champions (1): 1985
  • Jalil Cup (Varanasi)
    • Champions (1): 1985
  • Plaza Soccer Trophy
    • Champions (1): 1975
  • Taca Goa Championship
    • Champions (3): 1977, 1979, 1990
  • Four Square Trophy
    • Champions (1): 1982
  • Arlem Soccer Cup
    • Champions (1): 1985
  • Goa Governor's Cup
    • Runners-up (3): 2002, 2005, 2007
  • AWES Cup
    • Champions (1): 2017
  • GFA Charity Cup
    • Champions (2): 2021, 2023
    • Runners-up (2): 2018, 2019
  • Nagaradakshya United Cup
    • Runners-up (1): 2014
  • DSK Invitational Cup
    • Runners-up (1): 2015

Award

  • IndianFootball.com Awards — Team of the Year: 2003

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Dempo Sports Club para niños

  • List of football clubs in Goa
  • List of Goan State Football Champions
  • Indian football clubs in Asian competitions
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