Selangor F.C.

Selangor Football Club (Malay: "Kelab Bola Sepak Selangor"), commonly referred to as Selangor F.C. is a professional Malaysian football club based in the city of Shah Alam, Selangor and currently competes in the Malaysia Super League, the top tier of Malaysian football. The club are nicknamed the Red Giants. Founded in 1936 by the Football Association of Selangor (FAS), the association built its football development as a result of a merger with the Selangor Association Football League (SAFL - established in 1905) and forming the professional football team known as F.A. Selangor. On 2 October 2020, the club officially made its privatization under a new entity as Selangor Football Club after it was officially approved by the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) on 29 September 2020. The club currently plays their home games in the 25,000–capacity MBPJ Stadium after the club's original home, the Shah Alam Stadium, underwent renovation.
Selangor F.C. (formerly known as F.A. Selangor) are the most successful and most decorated club in Malaysia, in terms of overall honours won with 52 top-qualifying trophies and 61 trophies collectively. Domestically, Selangor F.C. have won a total of 6 Malaysia top division league titles which includes 2 Malaysia Super League titles (the league that the club currently plays in), 1 Premier League 1 title, 2 Semi-Pro League Division 1 titles and 1 Malaysian League title. In cup competitions, the club have a joint-best 5 Malaysia FA Cups, a record of 33 Malaysia Cups and a record of 8 Malaysia Charity Shields. In addition, the club have also won 2 second-division titles, 1 Malaysia Premier League title and 1 Semi-Pro League Division 2 title and between 1951 to 1973, 7 Malaysia FAM Cups where the Malaysia FAM Cup acted as a secondary knockout cup competition between state teams after the Malaysia Cup.
Selangor F.C. were also the first Malaysian club to qualify and enter an Asian continental club tournament, the where the club finished as runners-up in 1967, the first edition of the Asian top-flight continental club tournament, which was later rebranded as the AFC Champions League in 2002. 
The club also gave rise to many Malaysian football stars who brought success to both club and country such as Mokhtar Dahari, R. Arumugam, Abdul Ghani Minhat, Wong Choon Wah, Santokh Singh, Soh Chin Aun, Zainal Abidin Hassan, Azman Adnan, Rusdi Suparman, Mohd Amri Yahyah, Mohd Safee Mohd Sali, Bunyamin Umar, Syahmi Safari and many others. The club is also has the best club supporters across the Asian continent and holds several rivalries, most notably with Singapore, Kuala Lumpur City F.C. and Johor Darul Ta'zim F.C..
History.
1905–1936: Beginnings.
A state football association was founded in 1905 to establish and manage an internal state league, called the Selangor Association Football League (SAFL). The first cup competition was sponsored by the British Resident of Selangor, R.G. Watson. There were also reports that the association was led by British Residents at that time.
In 1926, an internal crisis led some officials to withdraw from the association and set up a separate association called the Selangor Football Association (SFA). The dispute between the SAFL and the SFA continued for almost ten years before the two sides negotiated on a deal for the betterment of the future of football in the state of Selangor. Finally, the two football entities officially merged on February 22, 1936, under the name of the Football Association of Selangor (FAS) (Malay: "Persatuan Bola Sepak Selangor") and forming Selangor FA to represent the state of Selangor.
1937–1960: Between World War II and Independence.
The outbreak of World War II slowed down FAS's efforts to develop domestic football. The effort was started aggressively as soon as the war ended. Efforts to upgrade state football continued with the association laying out plans to construct a football stadium for the state team. The state team who earlier used the Selangor Field Club (now Dataran Merdeka) as their home ground clearly required a stadium in line with the association's direction. The association management met the Mayor of Kuala Lumpur several times for permission to construct the stadium but a solution couldn't be found. The impasse meant that Selangor FA's home stadium plan had to be put on hold.
However, the appointment of Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj as the first official FAS president (who also held the presidency of both the Football Association of Selangor and the Football Association of Malaysia at that time) was a right move for the association. After becoming Prime Minister of the newly independent Federation of Malaya in 1957, Tunku Abdul Rahman pioneered the stadium construction business and ordered the construction of Stadium Merdeka to celebrate the country's independence as well as being Selangor FA's official home stadium. Merdeka Stadium also served as the official national stadium in staging international sporting events.
After 1951, Tunku Abdul Rahman vacated the presidency of the FAS. He was succeeded by the Independent MP for Bungsar (now known as Bangsar) constituency and also a teacher by profession, S. C. E. Singam, who became the second official FAS president until 1953, where he was succeeded by K. Sundram. Between 1951 to 1960, the club won 2 Malaysia Cups in 1956 and 1959, finishing as runners-up in 1957 and 2 Malaysia FAM Cups in 1953 and 1960, finishing as runners-up in 1952 and 1955.
1961–1983: Era of Harun Idris' Leadership.
Dato' Seri Harun Idris is synonymous with football in Selangor in the 1960s to the early 1980s. He ran as president of the FAS for 21 years from 1961 to 1983. During his leadership, Selangor FA won 15 Malaysia Cups as well as doing a lot of positive changes for the association. The club was originally headquartered at the MCA building in Jalan Ampang before the construction of Wisma FAS in 1973 at Merdeka Stadium under the president's (who was also the Chief Minister of Selangor at the time) and club manager Hamzah Abu Samah's efforts. 
In that time, the club won the Malaysia Cup 15 times in 1961, 1962, 1963, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1976, 1978, 1979, 1981 and 1982 as well as the Malaysia FAM Cup 5 times in 1961, 1962, 1966, 1968 and 1972.
1983–1989: Ahmad Razali Mohd Ali era.
Tan Sri Ahmad Razali Mohd Ali, who was the Chief Minister of Selangor at that time became FAS President from 1983 to 1989. In the 1984 Malaysian League season, under his leadership Selangor FA won their first ever Malaysian top division football league title that was first introduced with a league trophy in 1982. Additionally, Selangor FA also won the Malaysia Cup in 1984 to achieve a historic league and cup double, a first in the history of Malaysian football. 
The club also won the Malaysia Cup in 1986 where club legends Mokhtar Dahari and R. Arumugam made their final appearances in a Malaysia Cup Final. In 1989, the club also won the rebranded Semi-Pro League Division 1 that replaced the Malaysian League as the country's top-flight football league and in turn was the final trophy under Ahmad Razali's leadership.
1990–1995: New Stadium and Wisma FAS.
After a series of successes for Selangor FA, the FAS decided to end the club's tenure at Stadium Merdeka to fulfill the ambitions of the club. As a result, a new stadium development had to be approved and built. Finally, on January 1, 1990, a groundbreaking ceremony for the new stadium was held in Shah Alam. With the construction of the new Shah Alam Stadium, the ground could accommodate up to 80,000 spectators at a time. Its structure is the longest free gate in the world in that era. It also become one of the major landmarks in Shah Alam due to its impressive size and design. The stadium has been the home of Selangor FA since it opened in July 1994, after the club moved from Stadium Merdeka. FAS also moved to their new headquarters in Kelana Jaya which was known as Wisma FAS in the mid-1990s. In that time, the club won the Semi-Pro League Division 1 twice in 1989 and 1990, and won the Semi-Pro League Division 2 in 1993 after suffering relegation the year before, as well as a Malaysia FA Cup triumph in 1991, a Malaysia Cup triumph in 1995 and a Malaysia Charity Shield triumph in 1990. 
1996–2010: 17 Trophies Collected.
The period between 1996 to 2010 was Selangor FA's most successful period despite a relegation in between. In the 1996 season, with Ken Worden as head coach, they won the Malaysia Charity Shield and the Malaysia Cup. The following season, Steve Wicks was appointed as head coach and guided the club to success with a trifecta of trophies in the Malaysia Charity Shield, the Malaysia FA Cup and the Malaysia Cup. Under the guidance of coach K. Rajagopal from 1999 to 2000, Selangor won the 2000 Premier League 1 title, which was the top-flight league in Malaysia at the time and secured their fourth league title. Ken Worden was appointed again and won the Malaysia Charity Shield and the Malaysia Cup in the 2002 season. 
In the 2004 season, the club were relegated to the brand new second-division, the Malaysia Premier League. Dollah Salleh was appointed as head coach and won the 2005 Malaysia Premier League, the Malaysia FA Cup and the Malaysia Cup, completing a unique treble and won immediate promotion back to the Malaysia Super League. However, in the following seasons the club did not win any trophies as this was attributed back to the club's poor management. 
In the 2009 season, K. Devan was appointed as head coach and also the club manager. It was the first time in the club's history that both roles had been given to the same person. K. Devan is considered to have one of the best managerial records for the club. He won the Malaysia Super League in 2009 and 2010, the 2009 Malaysia FA Cup and the Malaysia Charity Shield in 2009 and 2010, with 2009 triumphs being the club's second ever double winning season after the 1984 success. Incidentally as of 2021, 2010 was the last time that the club won the top-flight league in Malaysia, the Malaysia Super League.
2011–2017: Period of decline.
The club went through in what is considered to be the worst period in their history having gone through 7 different head coaches. However, despite that, in 2015, the club won the Malaysia Cup for a record 33rd time under the management of former player Mehmet Duraković. That tally is still unsurpassed and the club remains as one of the most successful in the competition's history. Affairs off the pitch however were not great as management problems during the tenure of Mohamed Azmin Ali when he led the club as FAS President caused Selangor FA to vacate their home ground, the Shah Alam Stadium and the internal conflict between Exco members and management of the club also led to a decline in the club's performance on the pitch.
2018–present: Tengku Amir Shah era.
In July 2018, The Crown Prince of Selangor, Tengku Amir Shah (RMS) was appointed as the new President of FAS. He took over the seat left by Datuk Seri Subahan Kamal. Since Tengku Amir Shah took over the presidency, a lot of effort was made to improve the club. This began a new chapter for the club in the modern day.
In July 2019, the moved to a new 400,000 square feet facility in Section 5, Shah Alam called the FA Selangor Training Centre (now known as Selangor F.C. Training Centre) which had a three-year lease from the Government of Selangor. The facility also sees the administrative headquarters of the Football Association of Selangor, club administration office, training pitches, gym, first team lounge, physio treatment area, locker room as well as enabling the administrators and coaches to be put under one roof.
On 9 October 2019, as part of the privatization effort, FAS decided to only manage the U17 squad, U14 squad, U12 squad, the Women's squad and focused on the association's roles in the state of Selangor. 
The football team that was known as Selangor FA was managed by a newly established entity; Red Giants FC Sdn. Bhd. and the football team was rebranded as Selangor Football Club (Selangor F.C.) 
Selangor F.C. also took over PKNS FC and acted as a reserve team known as Selangor F.C. II and play in the Malaysia Premier League while the existing F.A. Selangor U21 and F.A. Selangor U19 squads were known as Selangor F.C. III & IV. All 3 teams were streamlined and restructured as part of a developmental path to the first-team squad.
Brand and Identity.
Crest and Colours.
The original emblem that was first created in 1936 was a result of the merger between the Selangor Football Association (SFA) and Selangor Association Football League (SAFL) contained the symbol of the wildebeest (gaurus). In the early-1970s, the FA of Selangor symbol "the head of the wildebeest" was replaced with the Flag and coat of arms of Selangor and the English lettering in the FA of Selangor emblem was written in Malay. 
The crest is shaped like a shield, while the emblem on the upper part of the crest is derived from the Selangor State Council coat of arms. The colour characteristics on the crest is the main colour of the state of Selangor which symbolizes Bravery for red and Royalty for yellow. Both of these colors are linked to the state flag which follows the identity of Selangor. The logo is then completed by featuring the state’s blazon on the top of it.
Reserve Teams.
• Selangor F.C. II
• Selangor F.C. III
• Selangor F.C. IV
Kits.
From the 1970s onwards, the Selangor team kit was manufactured by various companies including Admiral, Puma, Adidas, Lotto and Kappa.
From 1985, the Selangor team was sponsored by various companies including Dunhill, EON, Celcom, Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor (SYABAS), Telekom Malaysia (TM), and Menteri Besar Incorporated (MBI). Since 2014, the Selangor kit has been sponsored by the Government of Selangor under the names of six state government corporations. The company that sponsored the club the longest in its history was Dunhill from 1985 to 2004 with Dunhill having sponsored all the Malaysian clubs during that time before being banned by the Malaysian Health Ministry to decrease the popularity of smoking and tobacco in Malaysia.
From the 2019 season, the club kits were produced and sponsored by Spanish sportswear company, Joma which included the first-team, reserves, academy, women's and futsal teams.
Ownership and finances.
The holding company of Selangor Football Club, Red Giants F.C. Sdn. Bhd. is a private limited company, with approximately RM10 million shares in issue by the state Government of Selangor as a paid-up capital. The club was privatized at the end of 2019 season.
Among the shareholders for Red Giants F.C. Sdn. Bhd. are Tengku Amir Shah as majority shares issued, Perbadanan Kemajuan Negeri Selangor (PKNS), Menteri Besar Incorporated (MBI) and Football Association of Selangor (FAS). The total paid-up capital for this holding company is currently unknown.
Grounds.
Stadium.
Selangor F.C. have used several grounds throughout their history. The club's first ground was the Selangor Club Field (now known as Dataran Merdeka) where they played from their founding in 1936 until the independence of Malaya in 1957.
In September 1956, the club president, and also Malaysia's first Prime Minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman, ordered the construction of the Merdeka Stadium to celebrate the country's upcoming independence as well as the new home stadium for the "Red Giants". The stadium finished construction on 21 August 1957 and was inaugurated on 31 August 1957, the day the Federation of Malaya declared independence from British rule. Right after the declaration of independence, the club played their home matches to Stadium Merdeka, which would become the club's home ground for the next 38 years. The first football match took place on 1 September 1957 which saw Malaya defeat Burma 5-2 in a friendly match. In this stadium, which hosted 20,000 spectators, Selangor FA celebrated its first Malaysian league title in 1984.
After some successes, the club management decided that the Merdeka Stadium was not big enough for the ambitions of the club, and thus a new stadium was built and inaugurated on 16 July 1994. This was the Shah Alam Stadium, which could host an astounding number of up to 80,372 supporters, and became the club's home stadium for 22 years until 2016. The first match at the stadium was played between Selangor FA and Scottish club Dundee United F.C. in an invitational tournament, which resulted in a 1-1 draw, with the first goal being scored by Billy McKinlay. Other teams in the tournament were Bayern Munich, Leeds United, the Australian Olympic team "Olyroos", and Flamengo, who won the tournament.
In 2017, an internal crisis occurred within the club management, which resulted in the resignation of the club's president, Mohamed Azmin Ali, who was also the Menteri Besar of Selangor at the time. The crisis began when executive members of the club reportedly rejected the notion of privatization, which was suggested by the club's president. The crisis forced the club to move to a temporary home ground at the Selayang Stadium after the Selangor state government denied the club access to use their traditional home ground, the Shah Alam Stadium.
The following year, the club management of Selangor decided to switch the club's home ground to the Kuala Lumpur Stadium for the 2018 season. The club's president, Subahan Kamal, stated that the Kuala Lumpur Stadium could generate a higher income and that the Selayang Stadium did not meet the needed lighting criteria required by the FMLLP which is organizing body of the football league in Malaysia. The FA of Selangor originally proposed to use the club's traditional home ground, the Shah Alam Stadium and the Bukit Jalil National Stadium. However, both applications were rejected by the Selangor state government and the FMLLP respectively, with the latter's reason being that certain matches could collide with the Malaysia national football team's calendar.
The club moved back to the Shah Alam Stadium in the middle of the 2018 season after the new president, Tengku Amir Shah was appointed.
Training Centre.
The training facility is located at SUK Sports Complex, Section 5, Shah Alam. The 400,000 square feet training centre named the Selangor F.C. Training Centre was officiated by the Crown Prince of Selangor, Tengku Amir Shah in a ceremony attended by Menteri Besar of Selangor Amirudin Shari, club sponsors, association Exco members and media representatives on 24 July 2019. The facility also has an office complex for the management staff and technical staff, two FIFA size pitches, gymnasium, physio treatment area, a player lounge, changing room, pantry, etc.
Vizione Holdings Berhad, a strategic partner to Selangor was the biggest contributor to the construction of the RM1.5 million facility.
Supporters.
Since their inception in 1936, Selangor F.C. have developed a loyal, passionate and dedicated following. The club supporters are recognised for their loyalty, and long-supporting fans.
The fans' song of choice and the most commonly heard is a rendition of Red Yellow (). The anthems will play before every match. Ultrasel Curva's most frequently sung song is “Ale ale, Selangor ale". Other chants that are always heard are "Come on Selangor", "Inilah Barisan Kita", You're Obsessed", "Slaughter your enemy".
Selangor F.C. has various supporters' clubs such as Ultrasel Curva, Selangor Fans Club, Anak Selangor Fan Club and many other small fan clubs that are considered as regulars in the Shah Alam Stadium. Ultrasel Curva is one of the largest supporters group of Selangor. Wherever Selangor play, the group will be there to support. They always gather at the Gate 2 stand in the Shah Alam Stadium which they nicknamed it the Green Curva Nord. Accompanied by the drumline, they will stand and chant passionately for the entire game and wave huge flags occasionally.
Anak Selangor Fan Club is the second largest supporters group of Selangor F.C.. The fan club was formed by a group of loyal Selangor fans from many states that always gather up when the Red Giants play. The main colours for these supporters are red and yellow, which are the official colours for all the fan clubs in the state of Selangor. The fan club's target is to create a football academy with the help and support of former Selangor players such as Shahril Arshad, Jamsari Sabian and many more.
Red Giants Team Card is one of the new initiatives to appreciate the 12th player of the club, which are the supporters. The memberships have multiple benefits to the supporters and it also as an entry ticket to the home games matches. The membership needs to be renewed on a yearly basis. The club also actively partakes in using the internet and social media to communicate with the fans. The online presence is believed to be one of the strongest amongst the clubs in Malaysia. Official sites run by the club include Facebook (Selangor FC), Youtube (Selangor FC), Instagram (@selangorfc) and Twitter (@selangorfc) pages which fans can follow and receive the latest information about the club news, match, etc.
Rivalries.
Selangor F.C. has a historical derby with Singapore FA known as the "Malayan El Clasico" while matches with Kuala Lumpur City F.C. are known as the Klang Valley Derby.
The rivalry with Singapore was a football rivalry that occurred between 1921 to 1994. It is the oldest football derby in Malaysia. The rivalry arises from the numerous times the two clubs have battled for the Malaysia Cup title. With 57 titles between them (33 for Selangor and 24 for Singapore) this fixture has become known as one of the finest Malaysia Cup match-ups in history.
Kuala Lumpur City F.C. is always been a Selangor F.C.'s local rivals. The rivalry occurred due to the two state's geographical location. The local derby is contested between the two most developed states in Malaysia; Selangor and Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur. The rivalry goes back over 40 years when it started in the 80's. The rivalry was renewed when Kuala Lumpur City F.C. got promoted to the Malaysia Super League after a seven-year spell in the second division. Kuala Lumpur City F.C. were then relegated back to the Malaysia Premier League in 2012. The following year, 2013, Kuala Lumpur City F.C. were relegated to the then third-tier Malaysia FAM League for the first time in its history. At the end of the 2017 season, Kuala Lumpur City F.C. were promoted to the 2018 Malaysia Super League, and the rivalry was rekindled. However Kuala Lumpur City F.C. were relegated again to the Malaysia Premier League but were promoted back to the Malaysia Super League for the 2019 season until now.
Prior to be taken over, PKNS F.C. were one of Selangor F.C.'s local rivals. The rivalry occurred due to both clubs being in the same geographical location. However as part of the privatization process and to structure the football in the state of Selangor, PKNS F.C. become a reserve team for Selangor F.C., now known as Selangor F.C. II. 
A modern Selangor F.C's local rivalry since 2012 with Johor Darul Ta'zim F.C. until now.
Honours.
Double and Treble.
Doubles