Bhawanipore FC

Bhawanipore Football Club (also known as Bhawanipore Club) is an Indian professional football club based in Bhowanipore, Kolkata, West Bengal. The club was established in 1910, and competed in the I-League 2nd Division, then second tier of Indian football league system.

Bhawanipore currently competing in the Calcutta Premier Division. It is also nominated for the newly established I-League 3, 4th division national league in India.

History
Bhawanipore Football Club was founded in 1910 by Nani Mitra in Bhowanipore, Kolkata. After the independence of India, Robi Das became the first ever footballer from Bhawanipore who represented India in men's tournament at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London. The club in 1948, reached the final of IFA Shield and finished as runner-up after a 2–1 defeat to Mohun Bagan. In January 2012, they were officially certified by the All India Football Federation to participate in the I-League 2nd Division, the second tier of football in India. After playing 6 games during the season Bhawanipore ended in 6th place out of 7 in Group C and thus failed to move to the Final half. They have also participated in domestic tournaments such as IFA Shield, and Durand Cup. In the 1960s, Bhawanipore have gone through rivalries with two of India's most successful clubs Mohun Bagan and East Bengal in CFL. Notable Bengali footballers Asim Moulick and Parimal Dey appeared with the club in 1971.

In 2013, Bhawanipore clinched the Bordoloi Trophy, defeating Aizawl 1–0. They achieved third place in the 2013 I-League 2nd Division. In next season, the club participated in 2014 I-League 2nd Division and moved to the final round of I-League qualifiers, and achieved second place with 17 points in 8 matches. In May 2018, they officially announced that legendary defender Subrata Bhattacharya was appointed as new head coach.

In the 2019–20 I-League 2nd Division, Bhawanipore participated and made it to the final round of I-League qualifiers. Sankarlal Chakraborty was appointed as head coach and they signed who foreign players; Liberian Ansumana Kromah and Ghanaian Philip Adjah. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in India, usual final round format was scrapped off. It was decided that the final round of the league will be rescheduled into a new format and all the non-reserve teams from the preliminary stage will automatically progress to this round. It was officially named as I-League Qualifiers. The teams from the preliminary round were scheduled to play in a round-robin format in two venues, at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata and Kalyani Stadium in Kalyani, near Kolkata to advance to the 2020–21 I-League. Bhawanipore finished on the second position of the league table at the end of I-League qualifiers, with 9 points in 4 matches. In 2022 Calcutta Premier Division, Bhawanipore as group champion, qualified to "super six" round and finished as runner-up, behind Mohammedan Sporting. In June 2023, the Indian Football Association made an announcement that the merger of both Premier Division A and B of the Calcutta Football League have done ahead of its 125th edition, in which Bhawanipore was allowed to compete in Group II. The club later qualified for CFL "Super Six" round. They gained I-League 3 spot in August 2023, to compete in the inaugural edition.

Management and sponsorship
In 2012, Sangbad Pratidin became a premium sponsor of the club and they were also affiliated with Mohun Bagan AC. Sangbad Pratidin Bhawanipore Football Club Private Limited was incorporated on 22 December 2011. Its last annual general meet (AGM) happened on 29 September 2017. Its current board members and directors are Ashok Kumar Tiwari and Arun Sengupta. The club tent is located in Kolkata Maidan, 700069.

Stadium
Bhawanipore Football Club currently plays at the 20,000 seater Kalyani Municipal Corporation Stadium in Kalyani. They also use Rabindra Sarobar Stadium for some of their home matches.

Rivalry
Bhawanipore has the rivalries with other two Calcutta Football League sides Kalighat Milan Sangha and Tollygunge Agragami FC, which is often referred to as the "South Kolkata Derby".

Season statistics

 * Key
 * Tms. = Number of teams
 * Pos. = Position in league
 * Attendance/G = Average league attendance

Football
League
 * I-League 2nd Division
 * Runners-up (2): 2014–15, 2019–20
 * Third place (1): 2012–13
 * CFL Premier Division
 * Runners-up (4): 1952, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2022

Cup
 * Cooch Behar Cup
 * Champions (3): 1923, 1927, 1929
 * Ogilvie Cup
 * Winners (1): 1944
 * Bordoloi Trophy
 * Winners (1): 2013
 * IFA Shield
 * Runners-up (1): 1948
 * Naihati Gold Cup
 * Winners (1): 2022
 * LaLiga Youth Tournament (U-14)
 * Winners (1): 2024

Cricket

 * CAB First Division Championship
 * Winners (4): 2018–19, 2019–20, 2021–22, 2023–24
 * J. C. Mukherjee T-20 Championship
 * Winners (2): 2021, 2023, 2024 (joint-winners with Mohun Bagan)
 * P. Sen Memorial Trophy
 * Runners-up (1): 2023
 * CAB First Division One-Day Meet
 * Champions (1): 2024

Foreign internationals
The foreign players below had senior/youth international cap(s) for their respective countries. Players whose name is listed, represented their countries before or after playing for Bhawanipore FC.
 * 🇳🇦 Richard Gariseb (2012–2014)
 * 🇺🇸 🇦🇫 Mohammad Mashriqi (2012–2014)
 * 🇳🇬 Orok Essien (2016–2017)
 * Victor Kamhuka (2019–2020)
 * 🇬🇭 William Opoku (2020)
 * 🇨🇮 Arthur Kouassi K'gnan (2020)
 * 🇺🇬 Henry Kisekka (2021–2022)
 * 🇳🇬 Echezona Anyichie (2021–2022)
 * Willis Plaza (2022–2023)

Other notable player(s)

 * 🇧🇷 José Ramirez Barreto (2012–2014) – NFL Golden Boot winner in 2000–01.

Youth football and academy
Bhawanipore FC operates several youth teams (U-13, U-15 and U-18) and academy. Under-19 team of the club previously took part in Youth I-League, competed in "Kolkata zone" in 2014. In April 2024, the club entered into a partnership with La Liga Academy for grassroots development in youth football. In July, club's academy team named Bhawanipore Pro India Academy, took part in LaLiga U-14 Youth Football Tournament held at the University of Putra, Malaysia, and became undefeated champions.

Men's cricket
Bhawanipore FC's men's cricket (named 'Bhawanipore Club') section is under the jurisdiction of the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB), and competes in First Division League, J. C. Mukherjee T-20 Trophy and other regional tournaments. Club's cricket section is currently headquartered in 1, Nepal Bhattacharjee Street, Kolkata. Noted Indian international cricketers Rishi Dhawan, Jitesh Sharma, and other players like Chirag Jani have appeared with Bhawanipore in P. Sen Trophy. In 2023 edition of P. Sen Memorial Trophy, the club reached final, lost to Mohun Bagan at the end. Bhawanipore also participates in CAB T-20 Trophy.

In 2023–24 season, the club won treble, by winning CAB First Division Championship, J. C. Mukherjee T-20 Championship and the CAB One-day meet.

Tennis
Lawn tennis is a sport practiced at the Bhawanipore Club, and it is an affiliated member club of the Bengal Tennis Association (BTA).

Affiliated clubs
The following club is affiliated (reciprocal) with Bhawanipore FC:
 * 🇮🇳 Mohun Bagan AC