Pakistan Army F.C.
Pakistani football club
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Pakistan Army Football Club serves as the football section of the Pakistan Army. The club used to compete in the National Football Championship and Pakistan Premier League. The club regularly participates in the National Football Challenge Cup.
The Greens
| |||
| Full name | Pakistan Army Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nicknames | The Army The Greens | ||
| Short name | ARM | ||
| Founded | 1950 | ||
| Ground | Army Stadium, Rawalpindi | ||
| Capacity | 7,000 | ||
| Owners | Pakistan Army | ||
| Chairman | Brig. Gen. Saleem Nawaz | ||
| Head Coach | Jaffar Khan | ||
|
| |||
The club is operated by the Pakistan Army Sports Directorate, and its players are employed in the Pakistan Army, and recruited through the Army's sports quota or selected from within the forces.[1]
History
Early years (1950–1991)
The club was established in 1950 by the Pakistan Army.[2] It then regularly featured at the National Football Championship of Pakistan.
In the 1980 National Football Championship, it finished as runner-up after falling against Karachi Red in the final.[3]
League era reboot & first national titles (1992–1994)
In the season of 1992–93 of the Lifebuoy Soap sponsored league structured National A-Division Football Championship, the club finished as runner-up after Pakistan Airlines.[3]
The following season (1993–94), Army clinched its first national league title.[4][5]
Domestic consistency (1995–2003)
After the National Football Championship reverted to the old knockout format, the team won their second title in 1995.[5] During this decade, Army also made its mark in multi-sport competitions, capturing the football gold medal at the National Games in 1995 and 1997.[6]
Army also won the President PFF Cup in 2000 and 2001, alongside another National Games gold in 2001.[7][8]
Pakistan Premier League & continental participation (2004–2007)
The club was one of the founding members of newly formed Pakistan Premier League, appearing in the first edition in 2004, where the team finished runner-up after WAPDA.
Army clinched the second 2005 Pakistan Premier League title with 51 points, with striker Imran Hussain as the Golden Boot with 21 goals. As 2005 champions, Army qualified for the 2006 AFC President’s Cup in Kuching, Malaysia,[9] where they lost to Tatung and Transport United but earned a 1–1 draw with Khemara, exiting at the group stage.[10]
They repeated as champions in 2006–07, and subsequently played at 2007 AFC President's Cup on home soil in Lahore, drawing with Ratnam, and narrow defeats to Regar-TadAZ and Transport United.[11]
During this period, Army also won the National Games gold in 2004 and 2007.[12][13]
Near misses and stability (2007–2015)
Following their two back-to-back titles, Army finished runners-up in three consecutive PPL seasons (2007–08, 2008–09, 2009–10). The club later placed second again in 2014–15. In 2016, Pakistan Army defeated Pakistan Airlines in the All-Pakistan Football Tournament at the Peoples Football Stadium in Karachi.[14]
Recent years (2018–present)
After years of turmoil within the Pakistan Football Federation, resulting in domestic football inactivity, Army finished 4th in the league’s return season in 2018–19. Later on, the team won the National Football Challenge Cup in 2019.[15][16]
Stadium
The Army Stadium in Rawalpindi serve as the team own ground. It has regularly hosted several Pakistan Premier League and National Challenge Cup fixtures.[17][18]
Competitive record
The club's competitive record since the 2004 season are listed below.
| Season | Div | Tms | Pos | National Challenge Cup | AFC President's Cup | AFC Cup |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Pakistan Premier League | 16 | 2 | – | DNP | DNP |
| 2005 | Pakistan Premier League | 12 | 1 | Semi-finals | DNP | DNP |
| 2006–07 | Pakistan Premier League | 12 | 1 | – | Group stage | DNP |
| 2007–08 | Pakistan Premier League | 14 | 2 | – | Group stage | DNP |
| 2008 | Pakistan Premier League | 14 | 2 | – | DNP | DNP |
| 2009 | Pakistan Premier League | 14 | 2 | Quarter-finals | DNP | DNP |
| 2010 | Pakistan Premier League | 16 | 5 | Semi-finals | DNP | DNP |
| 2011 | Pakistan Premier League | 16 | 3 | Semi-finals | DNP | DNP |
| 2012–13 | Pakistan Premier League | 16 | 4 | Quarter-finals | DNP | DNP |
| 2013–14 | Pakistan Premier League | 16 | 5 | Quarter-finals | DNP | DNP |
| 2014–15 | Pakistan Premier League | 12 | 2 | – | DNP | DNP |
| 2018–19 | Pakistan Premier League | – | No League Held | Semi-finals | DNP | DNP |
| 2021–22 | Pakistan Premier League | – | No League Held | Semi-finals | DNP | DNP |
| 2018–19 | Pakistan Premier League | 16 | 4 | Quarter-finals | DNP | DNP |
Performance in AFC competitions
Win Draw Loss
| Season | Competition | Round | Club | First leg | Second leg | Aggregate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | AFC President's Cup | Group stage |  Tatung |
1–4 | ||
 Transport United |
0–1 | |||||
 Khemara |
1–1 | |||||
| 2007 | AFC President's Cup | Group stage |  Ratnam Sports Club |
3–3 | ||
 Regar-TadAZ |
1–2 | |||||
| Transport United |
2–3 | |||||
Honours
Domestic
- National Football Championship
- Winners (2): 1993–94, 1995
- National Football Challenge Cup
- Winners (3): 2000, 2001, 2019
- National Games
- Winners (5): 1995, 1997, 2001, 2004, 2007
- Inter-Services Football Championship
- Winners (1): 1975