Rangdajied United FC

The club was formerly known as "Ar-Hima",^[7] that literally means 'The Two Kingdoms'. During the 2012–13 season,^[8] the club has changed its name to Rangdajied United FC.^[9][10]

"Rangdajied" in the Khasi language is an expression which signifies a brave, courageous, patriotic man at the prime of his youth.^[9]

Rangdajied United was founded in 1987 as Ar-Hima.^[11] The club has participated in various editions of the Shillong Premier League and enjoyed massive rivalries with their fellow Shillong based clubs Shillong Lajong and Royal Wahingdoh.^[12]

The club has participated in the 2013 I-League 2nd Division and qualified for the main round.^[13]Having won the 2013 I-League 2nd Division final round held at Bangalore,^[14] Rangdajied qualified for the I-League.^[15] On 20 November 2013, Rangdajied agreed the signings of India national team stars Gouramangi Singh, Subrata Pal, Sandesh Jhingan, Manandeep Singh, and Tomba Singh,^[16][10] and competed in the 2013–14 season.^[17] They finished as 11th in the league table with 25 points in 24 matches. In the following season Rangdajied was evicted from I-League for not fulfilling the Asian Football Confederation's club licensing criteria.^[18]

After clinching the 2013 edition of Shillong Premier League, Rangdajied finished as runners-up in 2016 season.^[19] In 2015–16 season, the club was managed by Khlain Pyrkhat Syiemlieh, who cleared the AFC A licence at that time.^[20] Rangdajied then became a regular participant in Meghalaya State League, formed in 2017.^[21] Later in 2019 season, they again achieved runners-up position, gaining 22 points in 12 matches.^[22] The club finished as runners-up in second edition of the Meghalaya State League.^[23] In June 2023, Rangdajied clinched their first ever Meghalaya State League title, defeating Khliehmawlieh YC in final.^[24] In November of the same year, the club returned to the nationwide league, joining newly formed I-League 3.^[25] Later on 10 November, club CEO Andrew Suting officially announced Meghalaya Tourism as main sponsor, stating, "The support from Meghalaya Tourism will undoubtedly contribute to the growth and development of the football club while simultaneously drawing attention to the treasures of the state."^[25]

In August 2023, Rangdajied United gained I-League 3 spot to compete in the inaugural edition.^[26] They began the league campaign on 13 November in Goa, beating Millat FC 5–0 in Group C.^[27]

Rangdajied United was sponsored by Italian athletic footwear and apparel manufacturer Diadora.^[28][29] It was the first Indian soccer club to be sponsored by Diadora.^[28]

They also had Football Solutions, a New Delhi football consultancy firm, as a sponsor.^[30]

In I-League, there were consecutive promotions and relegations of Meghalayan teams Rangdajied United (2013–14 I-League), Royal Wahingdoh (2014–15 I-League) and Shillong Lajong (2018–19 I-League).^[32] In both the domestic and regional leagues, Rangdajied played against both Shillong Lajong and Royal Wahingdoh respectively in the "Shillong Derby".^[33][34]

The first match of the derby in I-League to be played was on 22 November 2013 between Shillong Lajong and Rangdajied United that ended in a 1–1 draw. Both the rivalries continued thereafter in Shillong Premier League for a brief period until the teams were dissolved.^[35]

Rangdajied United plays all their home games at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Shillong,^[33][36] which has a capacity of approximately 30,000 spectators.^[37] It has artificial turf.^[38]

For all current and former notable players of Rangdajied United with a Wikipedia article, see Rangdajied United FC players.

• 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 Rangdajied United FC.^[39]
• Kelechi Okoye (2012–2013)^[40]
• Kim Song-yong (2013–2014)^[41]
• James Moga (2016–2017)^[42]

• I-League 2nd Division
  • Champions (1): 2012–13^[43]
• Meghalaya State League
  • Champions (1): 2023^[44]
  • Runners-up (1): 2019^[45]
• Shillong Premier League
  • Champions (1): 2013^[46]
  • Runners-up (6): 2011,^[47] 2016,^[48] 2017,^[49] 2019,^[50] 2022,^[51] 2023^[52]
  • Third place (1): 2018^[53]

The club also operates youth age-group teams and academies, alongside participating in regional championships.

Honours

• ENE Cup (U-10)
  • Champions (1): 2022^[54]
• U-19 Shillong Premier League
  • Runners-up (1): 2012^[55]

• List of football clubs in Meghalaya

Bibliography

• Kapadia, Novy (2017). Barefoot to Boots: The Many Lives of Indian Football. Penguin Random House. ISBN 978-0-143-42641-7.
• Martinez, Dolores; Mukharjiim, Projit B (2009). Football: From England to the World: The Many Lives of Indian Football. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-138-88353-6. Archived from the original on 2 July 2022.
• Dineo, Paul; Mills, James (2001). Soccer in South Asia: Empire, Nation, Diaspora. London, United Kingdom: Frank Cass Publishers. p. 33. ISBN 978-0-7146-8170-2. Archived from the original on 25 July 2022.
• Nath, Nirmal (2011). History of Indian Football: Upto 2009–10. Readers Service. ISBN 9788187891963. Archived from the original on 22 July 2022.
• Sharma, Nikhil Paramjit; Gupta, Shantanu (4 February 2019). India's Football Dream. SAGE Publications India. ISBN 9789353283063. Archived from the original on 4 October 2022. Retrieved 4 October 2022.
• Majumdar, Boria; Bandyopadhyay, Kausik (2006). A Social History Of Indian Football: Striving To Score. Routledge. ISBN 9780415348355. Archived from the original on 29 June 2021.
• Basu, Jaydeep (2003). Stories from Indian Football. UBS Publishers' Distributors. ISBN 9788174764546. Archived from the original on 11 October 2022.

Other sources

• "Football — the passion play in Kolkata". ibnlive.in. IBN Live. 13 December 2011. Archived from the original on 11 January 2012. Retrieved 11 August 2014.
• "United Sikkim, Samity and Mohd. Sporting through to the final round". New Delhi: All India Football Federation. 14 April 2011. Archived from the original on 11 March 2012. Retrieved 14 April 2011.
• Mitra, Atanu; Netto, Brendon (23 September 2013). "United Sports Club 2–0 Rangdajied United FC: Ranti and Eric seal the win for the hosts". Goal.com. Archived from the original on 23 September 2013. Retrieved 22 September 2013.
• "Manipur Footballer David Ngaihte Rocks For Rangdajied United". e-pao.net. Imphal: E-PAO. Hueiyen News Service. 17 October 2013. Archived from the original on 19 October 2013. Retrieved 13 October 2013.
• "Rangdajied winger David Ngaihte Moves to Shillong Lajong". Feverpitch.in. 5 May 2014. Archived from the original on 12 May 2014.
• Chaudhuri, Arunava (14 December 2012). "Indian Football: Transfer Season 2012/13 — Version 8". Sportskeeda. Archived from the original on 18 July 2020. Retrieved 18 July 2020.
• "Rangdajied United 1–2 Sporting Goa | I-League 2013–14". Soccerway. 2 April 2014. Archived from the original on 2 September 2016. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
• Chaudhuri, Arunava (5 March 2013). "Mumbai's Kenkre FC name squad for 2nd Division I-League". sportskeeda.com. Sportskeeda. Archived from the original on 7 March 2023. Retrieved 7 March 2023.
• "Retracing Shillong Lajong's journey back to I-League". khelnow.com. Khel Now. 23 May 2023. Archived from the original on 24 May 2023. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
• "Alfred Jaryan earns a point for Mumbai against Dempo". feverpitch.in. Fever Pitch. 6 April 2014. Archived from the original on 29 January 2016.
• "Rangdajied United vs. Pune 3—2". Soccerway.com. Archived from the original on 6 December 2013. Retrieved 24 December 2013.
• "Santosh Kashyap, lone Indian selected for FIFA/AFC Futsal Instructor Course". Kick off India. 18 October 2010. Archived from the original on 28 March 2012. Retrieved 2 August 2011.
• Bhattacharya, Arka (14 June 2017). "Former I-League side Royal Wahingdoh to go back to being a community run club". Scroll.in. Shillong. Archived from the original on 12 November 2020. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
• Bhattacharjee, Nilotpal (27 October 2015). "Japanese recruit for Aizawl FC". The Telegraph India. Archived from the original on 8 May 2016. Retrieved 9 January 2016.
• Bhattacharya, Nikhilesh (5 December 2012). "Not just about the money — Bhaichung Bhutia's United Sikkim FC faces challenges that test him as an administrator". LiveMint. Gangtok. Archived from the original on 30 October 2023. Retrieved 30 October 2023.
• Bhattacharya, Arka (21 January 2017). "This Wahingdoh boy went from being scouted to U-15 I-League Player of the Year in just two years". thefield.scroll.in. Shillong: Scroll. Archived from the original on 13 November 2023. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
• "Wahingdoh appoints Kashyap as new coach". theshillongtimes.com. Shillong: The Shillong Times. 25 October 2014. Archived from the original on 30 June 2018. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
• Noronha, Anselm. "Bengaluru FC 3–0 Rangdajied United: Bangalore boys cruise past the north eastern outfit". Goal.com. Archived from the original on 3 October 2013. Retrieved 29 September 2013.
• "India 2012—13: I-League 2nd Division". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 7 October 2021.
• "2nd Division League Starts in Feb '14". i-league.org. New Delhi: All India Football Federation. 9 January 2014. Archived from the original on 11 January 2014. Retrieved 16 January 2014.

• Rangdajied United FC on X
• Rangdajied United FC on Facebook
• Rangdajied United FC on Instagram
• Rangdajied United FC at Global Sports Archive
• Goal.com
• Rangdajied United FC at All India Football Federation
• Team profile at WorldFootball.net