Dempo Sports Club is a popular football club from Panjim, Goa. The club has won many titles and is a very strong team from India. The owner of the club is Dempo group of companies, and the company is the main sponsor for the club as well. The team is fashionably known as `the whites`. Dempo Sports Club has been a thorough professional team and has been constantly performing in all national football championship and achieved immense fame and recognition in the last four decades of its existence.
Ownership of Dempo Sports Club
Presently, Dempo Sports Club`s main sponsor and owner is Dempo Mining Corporation Limited. The club has been owned by Dempo since their creation. As part of the sponsorship from Dempo the club also named itself Dempo Sports Club and is classed as an institutional club in that case.
History of Dempo Sports Club (1960-2006)
When it all began in 1960`s, the Dempo Sports Club was known as Bicholim Football Club, which was a team ranked among the top in the First Division Leagues. Football lovers in India remember the Bicholim Football Club as one of the outstanding teams in the country. Likes of Subhash Sinari, Bernard Olivera, Tolentino Serrao, Bhaskar, Kalidas Gaad, Manohar Pednekar, Bhai Pednekar, Ganpat Gaonkar and Pandurang Gaonkar are still remembered and respected. These people are considered as one of the best that existed during that period.
Bicholim Sports Club was later adopted by Dempo Souza in 1967 and was renamed Dempo Souza Sports Club. Even then the team remained one of the strongest team in the country with players like Eustaquio, Dass, Balaguru, Olavo, Colaco, Inacio, Felix Barreto, Thapa, Ramesh Redkar, Socrates Carvalho, Sadanand Asnodkar and Tulsidas Alornekar. In 1969, the team stood as the first runner up in the Vasco Sports Club in the Senior Division League.
The Dempo Souza Sports Club finally became Dempo Sports Club, after Dempo bought Mr Michael D`Souza`s stake in the Dempo Souza enterprise. However, Dempo Sports Club prospered when Vasantrao Dempo, the chairman of the House of Dempo, extended his benefaction to football team in an extensive manner. Dempo then came at par with the other business houses, like Salgaocar, Agencia Commercial Maritima, Shantilal and Sesa Goa who had their own teams.
2007-Present
Dempo Sports Club created history when they participated in the I-League and formed the first team to do so, and soon after, they started to win matches and won the first ever I-League season in 2007-08. Once they tasted success in the I-League matches they were participated in the 2008 AFC Cup where they surprised their fans and football lovers across the country by making it to the Semi-Finals after winning in the quarter-finals against the Singapore side, Home United FC, with a tantalizing margin of 4-3.
Dempo SC, after successfully winning the I-League for 2007-08 seasons, participated in the 2009 AFC Champions League West Asian qualifier stage where they unable to win against Sharjah, United Arab Emirates side, and lost by a shameful margin of SC 3-0. Dempo failed to win the 2008-09 I-Leagues and finished 4th in the table league table.
In 2009-10 seasons Dempo SC started their I-League campaign with wins against their rivals Churchill Brothers SC, Mohun Bagan AC, and Mumbai FC. At the end of 26 games Dempo SC emerged as champs for the 2nd time in the I-League with a final total of 54 points.
In 2010-11 seasons for I-League matches Dempo SC started their league with three losses against Kingfisher East Bengal FC, Salgaocar SC, and surprisingly Air India FC. Dempo, after getting knocked out of the AFC Champions League they entered the group stage of the 2011 AFC Cup. They started the campaign with a 2-1 win over Al-Tilal from Yemen.
Official Logo of Dempo Sports Club
The official logo for Dempo Corporations sports clubs that it owns is the Dempo Sports Club crest. The logo comprises the words Goa (name of the state Dempo is based in) and Dempo Sports Club (name of the team). The logo of the club also has a picture of a golden bird in the middle of the crest.
Official Jersey of Dempo Sports Club
The official jersey of Dempo Sports Club is Blue and White. Ever since its inception Dempo`s jersey for home matches have always involved blue, mainly with the shirts, while the shots were always either black or blue. The colours of jersey for away matches were always all white but then in 2011 the club unveiled shirt with black strips on it as their jersey for abroad matches. However, the colour of shorts has remained the same.
Reknowned Players of Dempo Sports club
Many renowned and famous players of the national football side have once been a part of this Goan club. Players of importance who made a name for themselves while playing for this team are: Climax Lawrence, Clifford Miranda, Mahesh Gawli and foreign players like Ranty Martins Soleye of Nigeria and Beto of Brazil. The head coach of the club is Armando Colaco.
Stadium of Dempo
In the year 2011 Dempo SC has been playing its football at the Fatorda Stadium in Margao, Goa. Fatorda Stadium opened in 1989 and Dempo SC has been using it since its in I-League matches. There have been rumors however that state Dempo SC could soon very well create its own stadium.
Honours and Wins by Dempo Sports Club (Domestic)
•I-League: 2 in 2007-08, 2009-10
•National Football League: 2 in 2005, 2007
•Durand Cup: 1 in 2006
•Federation Cup: 1 in 2004
•Indian Super Cup: 2 in 2008, 2010
