ARA Football Club is an Indian professional football club based in Ahmedabad, Gujarat.[2][3][4] Founded in 2016, the club is nicknamed "Ahmedabad Alphas",[5] and previously competed in I-League 2nd Division.[6][7][8] ARA FC is the first professional team from Gujarat to compete in the nationwide league.[9][10] The club also competes in Gujarat SFA Club Championship.
 | |||
| Full name | Ahmedabad Racquet Academy Football Club[1] | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Alphas, Ahmedabad Alphas | ||
| Short name | ARA | ||
| Founded | 2016 | ||
| Ground | EKA Arena | ||
| Capacity | 20,000 | ||
| Owner | Vikram Patel | ||
| Head coach | Salim Pathan | ||
| League | I-League 3 Gujarat SFA Club Championship | ||
| Website | Club website | ||
| Departments of ARA FC | ||
|---|---|---|
 | | |
| Football (Men's) | Football (Women's) | Football (Reserves) |
Their reserve and youth teams play in both Hero Sub-Junior League and Hero Elite League, while women team is member of Indian Women's League.[11]
History
Academy and early years
Ahmedabad Racquet Academy (ARA) started its journey as a professional multi-sports academy in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, which mainly consists of racquet sports and has been running since 2011 and began participating in Ahmedabad Junior league.[12][13] The football club was among the newest projects established by the academy in recent times as an initiative by owner Vikram Patel.[14][15]
Formation of club
The existing academy owned by Patel emerged as ARA FC in 2016 to ensure development of football in the Indian state of Gujarat.[15] On 19 July 2018, their academy were accredited and given two stars based on eligibility criteria, which allowed them to play in Youth League U18.[16] ARA as a club became affiliated with Gujarat State Football Association (GSFA) in 2017,[17] and began competing in the ADFA Premier Division League.[18][19]
2018–present
On 20 November 2018, AIFF nominated ARA for proposed inclusion in the 2018–19 2nd Division League.[20][21] On 7 December, it was announced that ARA FC would be one of nine clubs to play that season.[22] Thus the Ahmedabad-based club became the only team from the state competing in a domestic tier league.[23]
In their maiden I-League 2nd Division in the 2018–19 season,[24] ARA finished on fourth place in Group A with 11 points in 8 matches as Lonestar Kashmir progressed to the final round.[25][26]
They were nominated for participating in the 2021 I-League Qualifiers, since emerging victorious in Gandhinagar Premier League.[27] They began their journey with a 1–1 draw against Corbett FC on 5 October at the Bangalore Football Stadium[28] but did not advanced to the final round.[29] In February–March 2023, the club participated in Stafford Challenge Cup in Bangalore.[30][31] In August 2023, ARA gained I-League 3 spot to compete in the inaugural edition.[32][33][34]
Home stadium
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ARA FC plays its home matches at the EKA Arena, which has a capacity of 20,000 spectators.[35] The stadium is located in Kankaria Lake, Ahmedabad, and has additional 10,000 temporary seats on the pitch area.[36]
Kit manufacturers and shirt sponsors
| Period | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|
| 2018–2021 | SEVEN[37] | Amul[38] |
| 2021–present | Decathlon Sports |
Current squad
- As of 13 March 2023
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | MF |  IND | Pratik Swami |
| 17 | MF | IND | Aditya Prathap |
| 18 | MF | IND | Vedant Kharkrwal |
| 19 | MF | IND | Prabin Tigga |
| 20 | FW | IND | Lalruatmawia |
| 21 | GK | IND | Vishal Rajkumar Dube |
| 23 | MF | IND | Khaidem Vicky Meitei |
| 24 | DF | IND | Rakesh Oram |
| 25 | FW | IND | Jay Kanani |
| 27 | DF | IND | Palash Barber |
| 28 | MF | IND | Bikramjit Singh |
| 30 | DF | IND | Jenishsinh Rana |
| 31 | GK | IND | Ankit Bhuyan |
| 33 | MF | IND | Yami Longvah |
Current technical staff
- As of 12 November 2019
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| Team manager | Marmik Pandya |
| Head coach | Vivek Nagul |
| Assistant coach | Salim Pathan |
| Physio | Falgun Bhatt |
Honours
League
- Gujarat SFA Club Championship[39][40][41]
- Champions (1): 2022
- ADFA Ahmedabad District League 2nd Division
- Champions (1): 2017[42]
- ADFA Ahmedabad District League 1st Division
- Champions (2): 2018,[42] 2021–22
- Gandhinagar Premier League
- Champions (1): 2020–21
Cup
- Heritage Cup Jaipur
- Champions (1): 2020
Records
| Season | Div. | Tms. | Pos. | Attendance/G | Federation Cup/Super Cup | AFC Champions League | AFC Cup |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018–19 | IL2 | 16 | G4th | 650 | DNP | DNP | DNP |
| 2019–20 | IL2 | 18 | Final round 4th | – | DNP | DNP | DNP |
- Key
- Tms. = Number of teams
- Pos. = Position in league
- Attendance/G = Average league attendance
Managerial record
updated on 25 October 2020
| Name | Nationality | From | To | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | Win% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vivek Nagul[43] | India | 2018 | 2021 | 19 | 7 | 4 | 8 | 28 | 29 | 36.84 |
| Manuel Retamero Fraile |  Spain | 2021 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
Notable players
For current and former notable ARA FC players with a Wikipedia article, see: ARA FC players.
Other departments
Women's team
ARA FC has its women's football team that competes in the Indian Women's League, the highest division of Indian women's football.[44] Before the kick-off of 2021–22 Indian Women's League season, four teams including ARA Women from four states played each other once in April 2022, in the qualifying round at the Ambedkar Stadium in New Delhi and they qualified for the final round after topping the group.[45]
Honours
- Gujarat State Women's League
- Champions (1): 2021–22[46]
- Third place (1): 2022–23
Youth men's
Youth men's team of ARA competes in the Ahmedabad Elite Youth Cup Ahmedabad.[47] Club's U17 team participated in "regional group stages" of 2022–23 U-17 Youth Cup.[48]
Football academy
Football Academy of ARA FC gained 'elite category' accreditation by the All India Football Federation in December 2023.[49]
See also
References
Further reading
- "Match report: ARA vs Hindustan". i-league.org. Archived from the original on 9 October 2021. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
- "ARA 5–0 Mumbai City Reserves". All India Football Federation. Archived from the original on 11 December 2021. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
- "I-League Qualifiers: Bhawanipore FC Sign Off with Comfortable 2–0 Win over ARA FC". Kolkata: News18. 19 October 2020. Archived from the original on 11 January 2021. Retrieved 9 January 2021.
External links
- ARA Football Club at the-aiff.com
- Team info at spotik.in
- Team info at Global Sports Archive
- ARA FC archives at ANI News