ARA FC

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ARA
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Full nameAhmedabad Racquet Academy Football Club[1]
NicknamesThe Alphas, Ahmedabad Alphas
Short nameARA
Founded2016; 10 years ago (2016)
GroundEKA Arena
Capacity20,000
OwnerVikram Patel
Head coachSalim Pathan
LeagueI-League 3
Gujarat SFA Club Championship
Websitewww.racquetacademy.in/football

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.

Their reserve and youth teams play in both Hero Sub-Junior League and Hero Elite League, while the women's team is a member of Indian Women's League.[11]

History

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Academy and early years

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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

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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

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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 in 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, by virtue of 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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File:EKA Arena Stadium(TransStadia).jpg
EKA Arena by TransStadia, home ground of ARA

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]

File:Aka arena .jpg
Panoramic view of the stadium

Kit manufacturers and shirt sponsors

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Period Kit manufacturer Shirt sponsor
2018–2021 SEVEN[37] Amul[38]
2021–present Decathlon Sports

Current squad

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As of 13 March 2023

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK File:Flag of India.svg IND sangramjith Roy
2 DF File:Flag of India.svg IND Daniel
3 DF File:Flag of India.svg IND Surajit Seal
5 FW File:Flag of India.svg IND Vivekananda Sagayaraj
6 MF File:Flag of India.svg IND Hijam Lenin Singh
7 FW File:Flag of India.svg IND Manvir Singh
8 MF File:Flag of India.svg IND Rutig Ahirrao
9 FW File:Flag of India.svg IND Fredsan Marshall
10 FW File:Flag of India.svg IND
11 DF File:Flag of India.svg IND Jacob John
12 DF File:Flag of India.svg IND Shanid Valan
13 DF File:Flag of India.svg IND Parnenda Singh Thakur
14 MF File:Flag of India.svg IND D Sheltohn Paul
15 MF File:Flag of India.svg IND Lalthankuma
No. Pos. Nation Player
16 MF File:Flag of India.svg IND Pratik Swami
17 MF File:Flag of India.svg IND Aditya Prathap
18 MF File:Flag of India.svg IND Vedant Kharkrwal
19 MF File:Flag of India.svg IND Prabin Tigga
20 FW File:Flag of India.svg IND Lalruatmawia
21 GK File:Flag of India.svg IND Vishal Rajkumar Dube
23 MF File:Flag of India.svg IND Khaidem Vicky Meitei
24 DF File:Flag of India.svg IND Rakesh Oram
25 FW File:Flag of India.svg IND Jay Kanani
27 DF File:Flag of India.svg IND Palash Barber
28 MF File:Flag of India.svg IND Bikramjit Singh
30 DF File:Flag of India.svg IND Jenishsinh Rana
31 GK File:Flag of India.svg IND Ankit Bhuyan
33 MF File:Flag of India.svg IND Yami Longvah

Current technical staff

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As of 12 November 2019
Position Name
Team manager India Marmik Pandya
Head coach India Vivek Nagul
Assistant coach India Salim Pathan
Physio India Falgun Bhatt

Honours

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League

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  • Gujarat SFA Club Championship[39][40][41]
    • Champions (2): 2022, 2025
  • 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

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  • Heritage Cup Jaipur
    • Champions (1): 2020

Records

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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

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updated on 25 October 2020

Name Nationality From To P W D L GF GA Win%
Vivek Nagul[43] File:Flag of India.svg India 2018 2021 19 7 4 8 28 29 036.84
Manuel Retamero Fraile File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain 2021 0 0 0 0 0 0 !—

Notable players

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For current and former notable ARA FC players with a Wikipedia article, see: ARA FC players.

Other departments

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Women's team

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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

Youth men's

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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

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Football Academy of ARA FC gained 'elite category' accreditation by the All India Football Federation in December 2023.[49]

See also

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References

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  12. ^ ARA FC scripts stunning wins Archived 8 October 2021 at the Wayback Machine The Ahmedabad Mirror. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
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  18. ^ ADFA 1st Division League: AFC On The Move Archived 4 October 2021 at the Wayback Machine Ahmedabad Mirror. Retrieved 4 October 2021
  19. ^ Ahmedabad District Senior Football League Gets Underway The Times of India. Retrieved 4 October 2021
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Further reading

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  • Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
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