Rajasthan United FC
Rajasthan United Football Club is an Indian professional football club based in Jaipur, Rajasthan.[2][3] Founded in 2018 as JECRC FC, the club participated in R-League A Division 2019, and were inaugural winner of the league. In 2020, JECRC FC was rebranded as Rajasthan United FC.[4] The club currently competes in I-League,[5] one of the top tiers of Indian football. Rajasthan United won the 2021 I-League Qualifiers and thus became the first ever club from the state to qualify for I-League.[6][7]
| Full name | Rajasthan United Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Short name | RUFC | ||
| Founded | 2018 (as Jaipur Engineering College and Research Centre FC) | ||
| Ground | Rajasthan University Sports Complex | ||
| Capacity | 6,000 | ||
| Owner | RUFC Sports Private Limited | ||
| Head coach | Fransesc Bonet[1] | ||
| League | I-League | ||
| 2020–21 | I-League Qualifiers, Champions (promoted) | ||
| Website | Club website | ||
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History
Rajasthan United FC is the premier professional football club office based in Jaipur and academy based out of Bhilwara, Rajasthan. The club was founded in 2018 by an engineering student name Kamal Singh Saroha with his colleagues and friends as JECRC CF (Jaipur Engineering College and Research Centre) and re-branded as Rajasthan United FC in 2020 after joining of the co founders Swapnil Dhaka and Rajat Mishra .[4] It comes under the banner of RUFC SPORTS PRIVATE LIMITED. In its first year of inception, they managed to win Rajasthan State Men's League.[8] In the 2nd season United came out as runners-up and qualified for the I League qualifiers on sporting merit.
In collaboration with Witty International School, they set up its residential football academy in Bhilwara.[9] The club plans to train players with the use of global training methodology. RUFC is one of the few clubs in Rajasthan to set up a fully functional residential academy.
In 2021, United were crowned champions of the 2021 I-League Qualifiers, thus becoming the first club from Rajasthan to qualify for the I-League.[10] In December, the club appointed Spanish manager Fransesc Bonet as new head coach.[1]
Stadiums
Rajasthan United is using the Witty Sports Club and Rajasthan University Sports Complex in Jaipur as their home grounds.
Kit manufacturers and shirt sponsors
| Period | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|
| 2019—2020 | AIO Sports[11] | Fire1on1[12] |
| 2021 | MISTK | |
| 2021– | Ambition Sportswear | Purnima University |
Personnel
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| CEO |  Dinesh Negi |
| Team manager | Siddharth Rawat |
| Technical director |  Paulo Menezes Magan Singh Rajvi[13] |
| Head coach | Vikrant Sharma |
| Assistant coach | Ravi Punia |
| Physio | Dr. Vishal Saxena |
| U15 team coach | Arijit Sarkar |
Players
Current squad
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Team record
Seasons
- As of 5 June 2021
| Year | League | Federation Cup |
Top Scorer(s) | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | W | D | L | GF | GA | Pts | Pos. | Player(s) | Goals | ||||
| 2018-19 | RL | 7 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 29 | 7 | 18 | Champions | DNQ | Anuj Sharma | 17 | |
| 2021 | RL | 7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 17 | 9 | 16 | Runners-up | DNP | Youraj Singh | 3 | |
- Key
- Tms. = Number of teams
- Pos. = Position in league
- Attendance/G = Average league attendance
Recent seasons
| Season | League | Tier | Pos. | Average attendance | Super Cup | Durand Cup |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020–21 | 2nd Division League | 2nd | 1st of 10 | DNP | – | |
| 2021–22 | I-League | 1st | ' of 13 | –[lower-alpha 1] | – | – |
- Matches were played behind closed doors due to COVID-19 pandemic in India.
Head coaching record
updated on 23 October 2021
| Name | Nationality | From | To | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | Win% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vikrant Sharma | India |
2020 | present | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 4 | 50.00 |
Honours
League
- I-League 2nd Division
- Champions (1): 2021
- Rajasthan State Men's League
Affiliated clubs
The following club is currently affiliated with Rajasthan United FC:
- Silvassa United FC (2021–present)
References
- Harigovind Thoyakkat (3 December 2021). Rajasthan United appoint Francesc Bonet as head coach Khel Now. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
- Rajasthan United FC trials at Jaipur spotik.in. Retrieved 29 July 2021
- "Rajasthan United FC, AIFF club lisence".
- "JECRC FC rebrands to Rajasthan United FC | Football India". 2021-03-26. Retrieved 2021-06-06.
- "I-League Qualifiers 2021: Rajasthan United crowned champions | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Retrieved 2021-10-23.
- "I-League qualifiers: Rajasthan United FC crowned champions, gain promotion in tournament". www.aninews.in. Retrieved 2021-10-23.
- "Rajasthan United earn promotion to I-League after winning 2nd division Qualifiers". Khel Now. 2021-10-23. Retrieved 2021-10-23.
- "First Ever Rajasthan State Men's League 2019 Started". udaipurkiran. 21 September 2019.
- "Rajasthan United FC set up Residential Academy -". Football India. 2021-05-21. Retrieved 2021-06-06.
- "Rajasthan United FC Crowned Champions of the I-League Qualifiers 2021". News18. 2021-10-23. Retrieved 2021-10-24.
- "Rajasthan United FC on Instagram: "We are delighted to announce that @aiosports is our Apparel Partner for the upcoming Season. • • • #rajasthanunited #aiosports #rufc…"". Instagram. Retrieved 2021-06-06.
- "Fire1on1". fire1on1.com. Retrieved 2021-06-06.
- Instagram https://www.instagram.com/p/CPr3cg7jz9k/. Retrieved 2021-06-06. Missing or empty
|title=(help) - "Rajasthan State Men's League 2019". 19 September 2019.
- "Rajasthan State Men's League".