Minerva Academy FC

Minerva Academy Football Club (often referred to as Minerva Punjab) is an Indian professional multi-sports club based in Chandigarh, Punjab, best known for its football, cricket and futsal teams. The club's football section predominantly competed in the Punjab State Super League.

Minerva previously participated in the I-League, then the highest division of Indian football league system. The club reached the AFC Cup Group stage, in the 2019 edition of the continental second tier. After selling Punjab FC to Roundglass Sports, owner Ranjit Bajaj bought stakes in Delhi FC. However, Minerva Academy remained active since its inception.

After being promoted into the I-League in 2016, the academy based club was rebranded as Minerva Punjab FC, and in 2019 the football section was relabeled as Punjab FC. The club has won the I-League title once, in 2017–18. Widely known as "the factory" of Indian football, Minerva is one of the most successful sports academies in the country.

2005–2020
The club was established in 2005 as Minerva Academy. It was founded as a purpose of reviving the glory of Minerva Club, an association football team of Minerva Public School in Mohali, that emerged as one of the most formidable football teams in the state of Punjab. Until 2013, the club was being operated as an amateur six-a-side football team (beside running academies) for local players from Chandigarh, alongside appearing in age-grouped tournaments.

Minerva initially fielded players in various regional competitions in Punjab and beyond, while club's first major tournament at the national level, was I-League 2nd Division in 2015–16. On 22 November 2015, the club began league journey with a 2–0 win against Kenkre. Goalkeeper Arshdeep Singh maintained cleen-sheets as Minerva thrashed PIFA 3–0 on 11 December. They reached final round of the tournament and maintained good form, but ended campaign earning second place after a 3–1 defeat to Dempo. They were promoted to the I-League after an impressive stint at the 2nd Division. Minerva later took part in 2016 Durand Cup, getting the direct entry. They earned only point from a 2–2 tie with Army Green in the last group stage fixture; hence couldn't qualify for the semi-finals. Minerva along with Chennai City, was promoted to I-League after the withdrawal of Dempo. The club ended 2016–17 I-League season at the second last position. In December 2016, Minerva roped in British coach Colm Joseph Toal as technical director. In October 2017, Bollywood actor Rannvijay Singha was unveiled as co-owner of the club.

Next season, surprising everyone, Minerva clinched the I-League title. It was their first ever top division title. They became first ones from North India to win the league since 1996; The title made the team qualify for their first-ever continental tournament. Minerva appeared in the Group stages of 2019 AFC Cup, alongside Indian Super League outfit Chennaiyin, starting from Preliminary round 2. However, they lost to Iranian club Saipa in Tehran, in the qualifying play-offs of 2019 AFC Champions League; therefore couldn't make it to the final round. On 3 April 2019, Minerva kicked-off their AFC cup campaign against Chennaiyin in Ahmadabad, which ended in a 0–0 stalemate. On 17 April, the club held Abahani Limited Dhaka of Bangladesh by 2–2 at Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka. They maintained undefeated form, drew both home and away games with Nepali side Manang Marshyangdi. They drew another game with Chennaiyin, this time 1–1 in Guwahati. In last group stage fixture at home, the club lost 1–0 to Abahani. Minerva were also placed in the round of 16 bracket of 2018 Indian Super Cup,  in which they lost to Jamshedpur 4–5 on penalties.

In July 2018, Minerva roped in noted Indian manager Sukhwinder Singh as technical director. Later on 8 August 2018, Northern Irish manager Paul Munster was appointed as new technical director—head coach of the club. The club won Punjab State Super League for the first time after becoming undefeated in 11 games, and later went on to win J&K Invitational Cup in Kashmir, jointly with Real Kashmir. In February 2019, Minerva signed a strategic partnership with Bundesliga club Borussia Mönchengladbach, aiming football development at grassroots level. On 8 February 2019, Minerva announced Munster's departure. In 2018–19 I-League, the club managed to win four of their twenty fixtures and finished ninth in the league table. They were placed in 2019 Indian Super Cup qualifying round, but refused to play protesting against uncertainty of I-League clubs' future in Indian football. Thereafter, they were also not invited to play 2019 Durand Cup. On 30 October 2019, announcement was made that after a partnership agreement with RoundGlass Sports Private Ltd., the club has been renamed as 'Punjab Football Club'. From mid 2019 until May 2020, the club was managed by Yan Law. After losing I-League spot, Minerva started playing football again in Punjab football league system with its youth age groups. It is the only Indian club to win all age group national titles in the same year, in 2017–18 season winning U13, U15, U18 and senior I-League.

2020–present
This year we have changed the name of the club from Minerva Punjab FC to Punjab FC. I have sold Punjab FC and not Minerva FC. We are now registered with Punjab Football Association as Minerva Academy Football Club again. RoundGlass Sports bought 50% of Minerva Academy's share earlier; In 2020, they bought remaining 50% from owners Ranjit and Heena Bajaj to form RoundGlass Punjab FC.

In November 2020, Minerva Academy was accredited as Khelo India State Centre of Excellence (KISCE) by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. The same year, Sports Authority of India (SAI) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Minerva for a period of four years under the "Khelo India Talent Identification and Development Program". The club became a regular participant in Shaheed-e-Azam Sardar Bhagat Singh Memorial Tournament.

Crest and colours
Club crest and emblem of Minerva depicting emblems of the three armed forces, the Sikh khanda symbol and the profile of Minerva – the Roman goddess of wisdom. Club colours are predominantly blue, white and black.

Stadiums
The official home ground of Minerva Academy was Tau Devi Lal Stadium of Panchkula, which was also used in the I-League. It has a seating capacity of 12,000 spectators. The club previously used Guru Nanak Stadium, but only for one season.

During I-League Second Division, the club used Minerva Academy Ground in Chandigarh as home venue. When the club entered into continental tourney AFC Cup, they used various stadiums which could fit the competitions standards. During the group stage, club played two matches at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati, and remaining at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar. They previously used Sector 17 Training Ground in Chandigarh for training purposes.

The club is currently using Minerva Academy Ground, which is located in Chandigarh.

Other records

 * Highest goalscorer in I-League, representing Minerva Punjab: 🇨🇲 Aser Pierrick Dipanda (with 12 goals).
 * Youngest goalscorer in AFC Cup: 🇮🇳 Thoiba Singh Moirangthem (at 16 years and 154 days), representing Minerva Punjab: 1–1 tie vs Manang Marshyangdi; 15 May 2019.
 * Maximum number of points earned in the country's highest division: 35 (in 2017–18 I-League).
 * Highest scoring in domestic league: 5–4 (away win vs. Churchill Brothers at the Tilak Maidan in Goa; 19 February 2017).
 * Biggest margin win/most goals scored by a team in the AIFF Sub Junior League: 33–1 win against Namdhari Academy (31 March 2024).

Youth and academy
Since the foundation in 2005, Minerva focused on youth development, and has more than hundred residential academies in the country. Club's youth men's section has been participating in various age-group domestic competitions, including U13, U15, and U18 Hero Youth Leagues,   in which they clinched multiple titles. Club's academy is responsible in nurturing talents, bringing up promising youngsters; Many of them graduated from the club's academy and went on to represent India internationally. In 2017–18, Spanish manager José Carlos Hevia served as head of Minerva's academy and reserve team. Ahead of the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup, club's reserve team appeared in an exhibition match against one of the participants Columbia U17. In June 2020, Minerva Academy was recommended for "Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar" for producing more than 70 players for the various India national football sides.

In 2022, U12 team of Minerva Academy took part in Mina Cup, an youth international tournament held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. In that tournament, they won title with dominant performance, beating Barcelona Academy 4–0 in final. Later in July 2023, they went to Sweden, and took part in U13 category of the prestigious Gothia Cup. On 22 July, defeating Brazilian side Ordin by 3–1 in final at the SKF Arena, Minerva Academy became the first ever Indian team to clinch Gothia Cup title. In that edition, more than 150 teams competed; Minerva went on to seal the championship winning all their matches, scoring 46 goals, and conceding only 2. Club's academy gained an 'elite category' accreditation by the All India Football Federation in December 2023. The club won Sub Junior League title in 2024, defeating Bengaluru FC 7–4 in final.

Notable Minerva youth graduates/players

 * Jeakson Singh Thounaojam
 * Dheeraj Singh Moirangthem
 * Givson Singh
 * Amarjit Singh Kiyam
 * Vikram Pratap Singh
 * Dilliram Sanyasi
 * Baoringdao Bodo
 * Kamalpreet Singh
 * Arshdeep Singh
 * Aakash Sangwan
 * Krishna Pandit

Cricket
Minerva has been running academies and teams for cricket since inception. It is widely known for producing international cricketers including Gurkeerat Singh Mann, Mandeep Singh, Rishi Dhawan, Barinder Sran, Manan Vohra, Siddarth Kaul, and Shubman Gill. The cricket section is accredited to Punjab Cricket Association (PCA). Minerva clinched JP Atray Cricket Tournament title in Mohali, in September 2005, in their debut season.

Futsal
The futsal section was included within Minerva Academy in later years, and the team participated in Futsal Club Championship, organised by the All India Football Federation (AIFF). The club emerged champions in 2022–23 edition, and qualified for AFC Futsal Club Championship. The club also clinched Punjab Futsal Club Championship title in 2023.

Association football
League
 * I-League
 * Champions (1): 2017–18
 * Third place (1): 2019–20
 * I-League 2nd Division
 * Runners-up (1): 2015–16
 * Punjab State Super League
 * Champions (2): 2017–18, 2019–20
 * Runners-up (1): 2018–19
 * Punjab State Second Division League
 * Champions (1): 2020–21
 * Punjab State Third Division League
 * Champions (1): 2020–21

Cup
 * J&K Invitational Cup
 * Champions (1): 2018
 * Harbhajan Singh Memorial All-India Football Tournament
 * Champions (1): 2018
 * Sukhia Gold Cup
 * Champions (1): 2019
 * Bodousa Cup
 * Runners-up (1): 2019

Youth
 * Youth League U18
 * Champions (1): 2018–19
 * Punjab State Youth League
 * Champions (1): 2021–22
 * All India Balachur Open Cup
 * Champions (1): 2018
 * Principal Harbhajan Singh Memorial Tournament (U17)
 * Champions (1): 2022
 * Youth League U15
 * Champions (4): 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19
 * Youth League U13
 * Champions (2): 2017–18, 2023–24
 * Chandigarh U17 Youth Championship
 * Champions (1): 2015
 * RFYS National Championship
 * Champions (1): 2018
 * Administrator's U17 Challenge Cup
 * Champions (1): 2018
 * Namdhari Under-17 Football League
 * Champions (1): 2021
 * CISCE Pre-Subroto Cup (U14)
 * Champions (2): 2023 (North-India zone), 2023 (all-India)
 * Subroto Cup
 * Champions (1): 2023 (sub-junior; U14)

International
 * Mina Cup (U12)
 * Champions (1): 2022
 * 🇸🇪 Gothia Cup (U13)
 * Champions (1): 2023

Futsal

 * Hero Futsal Club Championship
 * Champions (1): 2022–23
 * Punjab Futsal Club Championship
 * Champions (2): 2023, 2024

Cricket

 * JP Atray Cricket Trophy
 * Champions (1): 2005
 * Runners-up (1): 2019
 * Chandigarh One-day Open Cricket Tournament
 * Champions (1): 2005
 * Amey Tripathi Cricket Championship
 * Champions (1): 2016
 * Uttrakhand Gold Cup
 * Champions (1): 2016

Past and present internationals
The following Minerva Academy/Minerva Punjab players have been capped at full international level. Years in brackets indicate their spells at the club.

India

Asia (AFC)

Africa (CAF)

North America (CONCACAF)

Other foreign players
''All the players below, appeared in I-League, representing the club.
 * 🇧🇾 Dzmitry Kowb (2017)
 * 🇸🇳 Kassim Aidara (2017–2018)
 * 🇬🇭 William Opoku (2017–2019)
 * 🇯🇵 Yu Kuboki (2018)
 * 🇳🇬 Philip Njoku (2018–2019)
 * 🇨🇮 Lancine Touré (2018–2019)
 * 🇨🇴 Jorge Caceido (2018–2019)
 * Dawda Ceesay (2019)
 * 🇺🇦 Roland Bilala (2019)
 * 🇪🇸 Juan Quero (2019)
 * 🇬🇭 Kalif Alhassan (2019)
 * 🇧🇷 Sérgio Barboza Júnior (2019–2020)
 * 🇨🇲 Aser Pierrick Dipanda (2019–2020)
 * 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Jay Hart (2019–2020)
 * 🇧🇷 Danilo Quipapá (2019–2021)

Affiliations & partnerships
The following clubs/academies are/were affiliated with Minerva Academy FC:

Club
 * 🇮🇳 Techtro Swades United (2020–)
 * 🇮🇳 Delhi FC (2020–)
 * 🇮🇳 Techtro Lucknow (2020–)
 * 🇩🇪 Borussia Mönchengladbach (2019–2020)

Academy
 * 🇮🇳 Chandigarh Football Academy (2015–)
 * 🇮🇳 Kick Football Academy (2019–)