Al-Khaldiya Sports Club, also known as Al Khalidiyah, is a professional football club based in Hamad Town, Bahrain, that competes in the Bahraini Premier League, the top domestic football competition. It is the newest formed football club in Bahrain, established in 2020. The home ground of the team is Bahrain National Stadium with a capacity of 28,900. The club's name Al-Khaldiya ("الخالدية") literally means eternity.
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| Full name | Al-Khaldiya Sports Club | ||
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| Nickname(s) | Lions of Bahrain | ||
| Short name | Khaldiya | ||
| Founded | 27 October 2020 | ||
| Ground | Bahrain National Stadium Riffa[1] | ||
| Capacity | 24,000 | ||
| Manager | Ali Ashoor | ||
| League | Premier League | ||
| 2023–24 | Premier League, 1st of 12 (champions) | ||
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History
editAl-Khaldiya Sports Club was formed on 27 October 2020 and started off play in the Bahraini Second Division. In their first season, they finished 2nd with 12 wins, five draws, and just one loss, getting promoted to the Bahraini Premier League. In the qualifying round of the King's Cup, they beat Bahrain SC 6–1 but lost 1–0 to Al Riffa in the round of 16.[2][3]
Season 2021–22
editSeason 2021–22 was the first season of the club in the top-flight of Bahraini football. Huge names of Bahrain football and 7 regular national team players were brought into the club. Croatian coach and Asian Champions League winner Dragan Talajić signed with the club. Instantly from an underdog position, the club became one of the most powerful teams in Bahrain. On 29 December 2021, the club reached the semifinals of the Bahrain King Cup and will play the semifinals on 5 February 2022 becoming the first club to do so in the first top-flight season of Bahrain football. On 10 February 2022, Talajić took Al Khaldiya's side to the King of Bahrain Cup 2022 Final for the first time in the club's history. On March 5, Al Khaldiya won the Bahraini King's Cup against East Riffa Club winning the first-ever top-tier trophy in the history of the club.
Honours
editPlayers
edit[4][5][6] Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Former players
editNote: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Managerial history
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Mohammad Al-Shamlan (2021)
Dragan Talajić (2021–2022)
Bruno Pereira (2022)- Dalibor Starčević (2022–present)
- Ali Ashoor (2023 – till date)
References
edit- ^ "Bahrain. Al Khalidiya". azscore.com. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ "40yo Alexander Hleb comes out of retirement to sign for new club". 13 July 2021.
- ^ "Alexander Hleb signs up with Bahrain's FC Khaldiya". 7 July 2021.
- ^ "Bahrain - Khalidiya - Results, fixtures, squad, statistics, photos, videos and news - Soccerway".
- ^ "Al Khalidiyah live score, schedule and results - Football - SofaScore".
- ^ "Al Khalidiyah live scores, results, fixtures, al Khalidiyah v Al-Ahli live | Football, Bahrain".