Steel Azin F.C. facts for kids
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| Full name | Steel Azin Football Club | ||
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| Founded | 2007 | ||
| Dissolved | 2012 | ||
| Ground | Shahid Dastgerdi Stadium Tehran |
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| Capacity | 8,250 | ||
| Owner | Hossein Hedayati | ||
| League | Iran Football's 3rd Division | ||
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Steel Azin Football Club (which means "Steel Azin Football Club" in Persian) was a football team from Tehran, Iran. The club was owned by Hossein Hedayati, who also owned the company Steel Azin Iranian Holding Co. Besides football, Steel Azin also had a volleyball team that played in the top Iranian volleyball league. The club was active from 2007 until it closed down in 2012.
Contents
Club History
Starting Fresh
The club started as Ekbatan FC. It was brought back to life in the late 1990s by two former players, Rabti and Ghani. Year after year, the team climbed up the ranks of Iranian football. By 2003, they reached the Azadegan League, which is a high level of football in Iran.
For two years, Ekbatan FC managed to stay in the league. However, they didn't have much money, which made it hard for them to compete. In the summer of 2005, Rabti and Ghani sold the club to a wealthy Iranian businessman.
The new owners wanted to start a new chapter for the club. They promised to invest in young football players. They changed the coaching staff, making Rabti the Technical Director. Ghani stayed on as the Club Manager. The club even went to Dubai for training and played against other teams there. With new money and a home stadium (Shahid Dastgerdi Stadium), many thought Ekbatan would do very well.
However, the season started poorly. The coach was replaced after only three weeks, and Rabti became head coach again. The team kept losing games and was at the bottom of the league by the middle of the season. Rabti was later replaced by Hadi Ahangaran, who helped the team avoid being moved down to a lower league.
For the next season, Ekbatan made more changes. They brought in Farhad Kazemi as a special advisor. Mohsen Garousi became the head coach, and Ebrahim Vatanikia, a famous youth coach, took charge of the youth academy. Most of the players were new, and the club aimed for a middle-of-the-table finish.
But again, the season started badly. Garousi was fired after the team lost its first seven games. Asghar Sharafi took over and promised to keep the club in the second division. Even with a five-game winning streak, the team couldn't fully recover from its bad start. They finished in 9th place.
New Ownership: Steel Azin is Born
On April 30, 2007, a rich Iranian businessman named Hossein Hedayati bought Ekbatan FC. He changed the club's name to Steel Azin. With his strong financial support, Steel Azin aimed to become a major team in Iranian football.
Youth Academy Success
Ekbatan FC was known for having one of the best youth academies in Iranian football. They helped many talented young players become professional footballers. Before Hedayati bought the club, Ekbatan was one of the youngest teams in the Azadegan League, with an average player age of 23. After the takeover, the youth academy was completely rebuilt by Heshmat Mohajerani, a former coach of the Iran national football team.
Playing in the Top League
Hossein Hedayati spent a lot of money to bring famous Iranian football players to Steel Azin. These players included national team goalkeeper Ebrahim Mirzapour, Hamed Kavianpour, Ali Ansarian, and Mohammad Parvin. Football legend Ali Parvin became the Technical Director, and Theo de Jong became the head coach.
Despite having many famous players, Steel Azin did not get promoted to the top league in their first year. However, Mohammad Parvin was the team's top scorer. The next year, after some changes, the club finally earned promotion to the top league, known as the Iran Pro League.
Once in the top league, Steel Azin again invested heavily in new players. They signed international players and Iranian stars like Ferydoon Zandi and Amir Shapourzadeh. The most talked-about signing was Ali Karimi, who joined from their rivals, Persepolis. Even with all these stars, Steel Azin's first season in the top league was not as successful as hoped, and they finished in fifth place. Many blamed their defense for the results.
The 2010-2011 season was very difficult for Steel Azin. They changed managers many times and were at the bottom of the league for most of the season. Ali Karimi left the team, and there were some disagreements with their rivals, Persepolis. None of this helped the team, and they ended up being moved down to the second division. They finished last in the league, even though their owner, Hossein Hedayati, reportedly invested a lot of money.
Because of their poor results, despite having many famous players and large investments, the media nicknamed the club "FC Hollywood." This was also because some felt the players were more focused on their high salaries than on playing well. During their first season in the top league, they were sometimes called the "Galacticos of Iran."
After being moved down to the Azadegan League, Steel Azin moved from Tehran to Semnan. A new CEO was appointed. The club finished 10th the following year. However, they were later fined by FIFA and had 12 points taken away, which caused them to be moved down to the third division. Steel Azin played its last season in the third division and then closed down in 2012.
Season Results
The table below shows how the club performed in the League and Hazfi Cup from 2005 until it closed.
| Season | League | Hazfi Cup | Leagues Top goalscorer | Manager(s) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | P | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | Pos | Name(s) | Goals | |||
| 2005–06 | Div 1 | 22 | 4 | 9 | 9 | 20 | 28 | 21 | 10th | First Round | Hossein Vaez | 6 | Mohammad Rabti/ Hadi Ahangaran |
| 2006–07 | Div 1 | 22 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 13 | 24 | 25 | 9th | First Round | Mohammad Siah | 10 | Mohsen Garousi/ Asghar Sharafi |
| 2007–08 | Div 1 | 22 | 11 | 5 | 6 | 41 | 28 | 38 | 3rd | 1/8 Final | Mohammad Parvin | 15 | de Jong/ Jan Verheijen/ Kazemi |
| 2008–09 | Div 1 | 26 | 17 | 4 | 5 | 49 | 30 | 55 | 1st | 1/8 Final | Hadi Khodadadi | 10 | Nader Dastneshan |
| 2009–10 | IPL | 34 | 13 | 13 | 8 | 55 | 49 | 52 | 5th | Quarterfinal | Ali Karimi | 14 | Estili/ Peyrovani |
| 2010–11 | IPL | 34 | 6 | 10 | 18 | 30 | 63 | 28 | 18th | Quarterfinal | Siavash Akbarpour Mohammad Gholami |
9 | Tumbaković/ Peyrovani/ Khakpour/ Yavari |
| 2011–12 | Div 1 | 26 | 10 | 10 | 6 | 29 | 22 | 28 | 10th | Third Round | Hamid Kazemi | 11 | Afazeli/ Kheirandish |
| 2012–13 | Div 2 | 26 | 10 | 6 | 10 | 26 | 24 | 36 | 7th | First Round | Farid Behzad | 10 | Kheirandish |
Sponsorship Details
Main Sponsor
The main sponsor of Steel Azin Football Club was Steel Azin Co. This company was also owned by Hossein Hedayati, the club's owner. Before Hedayati took over, the main sponsor was Fabexi LLC.
Kit Makers
Here are the companies that made the team's uniforms over the years:
- 2005/06: Aghili
- 2006/07: Farhad
- 2007/08: Daei
- 2009/10: Majid
- 2010/11: Shekari / Umbro / Majid
- 2011/12: Merooj
Team Managers
Here is a list of the managers who coached Steel Azin Football Club:
| Name | Nat | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mohamad Rabti |  |
September 2006 | December 2006 |
| Hadi Ahangaran | |
December 2006 | May 2006 |
| Mohsen Garousi | |
June 2006 | September 2006 |
| Asghar Sharafi | |
September 2006 | June 2007 |
| Theo de Jong |  |
June 2007 | December 2007 |
| Jan Verheijen (Temp) | |
December 2007 | December 2007 |
| Farhad Kazemi | |
December 2007 | July 2008 |
| Nader Dastneshan | |
July 2008 | June 2009 |
| Hamid Reza Estili | |
June 2009 | April 2010 |
| Afshin Peyrovani (Temp) | |
April 2010 | July 2010 |
| Ljubiša Tumbaković |  |
July 2010 | October 2010 |
| Afshin Peyrovani | |
October 2010 | December 2010 |
| Mohammad Khakpour | |
December 2010 | February 2011 |
| Mahmoud Yavari | |
April 2011 | June 2011 |
| Human Afazeli | |
June 2011 | June 2012 |
Famous Former Players
- For a full list of players, see.
See also
In Spanish: Steel Azin FC para niños
