AC_Sporting_Beirut

BFA Sporting

BFA Sporting

Lebanese football club

BFA Sporting (Arabic: بي اف اي سبورتينغ), or simply Sporting, is a football club based in Beirut, Lebanon, that competes in the Lebanese Second Division. The club was founded in 1963, and first competed in the Lebanese football league system in 1997.

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BFA Sporting first competed in the Lebanese Premier League in 2021, having won the 2020–21 Lebanese Second Division. In 2023, they entered into a partnership with Beirut Football Academy.

History

Al Jihad SC

On 23 October 1963, Al Jihad SC (Arabic: نادي الجهاد الرياضي), based in Hay El Sellom, a district in Beirut, was formally recognized as a non-profit sports and cultural organization.[1] They played their first official season in 1997, in the Lebanese Fifth Division,[1] which they won in 1999–2000.[2] In 2007–08 they won the Lebanese Third Division,[1] and were promoted to the Lebanese Second Division.[3]

Al Khoyol FC

On 2 September 2009, the club relocated to Ghobeiry, and changed their name to Al Khoyol FC (Arabic: نادي الخيول الرياضي).[4]

In 2009–10, Khoyol lost a decisive match for promotion to the Lebanese Premier League against Akhaa Ahli Aley.[5] The following season, in 2010–11, Khoyol lost to Ahli Saida in another decisive promotion match.[5] In both instances, Khoyol complained to the Lebanese Football Association (LFA) for supposed match fixing.[5]

In 2014, Khoyol were relegated to the Third Division.[1]

Sporting

On 24 April 2018, the club changed their name to AC Sporting (Arabic: نادي سبورتينغ الرياضي) and moved to Beirut:[6] they promptly gained promotion to the Lebanese Second Division in 2019, coming first in the Lebanese Third Division.[7] Sporting won the 2020–21 Lebanese Second Division,[8] and gained promotion to the Lebanese Premier League for the first time in their history.[9] After finishing in last place, Sporting were relegated back to the Second Division.[10]

On 26 June 2023, the club issued a statement announcing that it had been acquired by Australian-Lebanese businessman Joseph Bacha, owner of Telford Civil. They also entered into a partnership with Beirut Football Academy, and renamed the club into BFA Sporting (Arabic: بي اف اي سبورتينغ).[11]

Players

For a list of all former and current AC Sporting players with a Wikipedia article, see Category:BFA Sporting players.

Current squad

As of 1 October 2022[12][13]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

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Honours

See also

Notes

  1. As Al Jihad SC

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to AC Sporting.
  1. [1]
    "Club History". AC Sporting. Archived from the original on 14 April 2021. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
  2. [2]
    Mahfoud, Maroun (13 April 2021). "Who is AC Sporting?". FA Lebanon. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
  3. [3]
    "Lebanon 2007/08". RSSSF. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
  4. [4]
    "الجامعة اللبنانية | التشريعات | تعديل اسم جمعية "نادي الجهاد الرياضي"- حي السلم ليصبح جمعية: "نادي الخيول الرياضي"". www.legallaw.ul.edu.lb. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
  5. [5]
    "سبورتينغ في الدرجة الأولى.. من هو؟ وكيف وصل؟". lebanonfg.com. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
  6. [6]
    "الجامعة اللبنانية | التشريعات | تعديل اسم ونقل مركز جمعية « نادي الخيول الرياضي» - الغبيري ليصبح «نادي سبورتينغ الرياضي» - بيروت". www.legallaw.ul.edu.lb. Retrieved 12 April 2021.
  7. [7]
    "Lebanese League Third Division 2018/2019". www.goalzz.com. Retrieved 20 March 2019.
  8. [8]
    "بالصور.. سبورتينج والحكمة يتأهلان لدوري الدرجة الأولى". كووورة. 16 April 2021. Retrieved 16 April 2021.
  9. [9]
    Hijazi, Alloffs (12 April 2021). "سبورتينغ في دوري الاضواء للمرة الأولى في تاريخه". El Maestro Sport (in Arabic). Retrieved 12 April 2021.
  10. [10]
    "الصفاء والحكمة أم المعارك في نهاية الدوري". كووورة. 4 May 2022. Retrieved 3 June 2022.
  11. [11]
    بيان اعلامي صادر عن ادارة نادي سبورتينغ الرياضي (in Arabic). BFA Sporting. 27 June 2023. Retrieved 5 August 2023 – via Facebook.
  12. [12]
    "Players". AC Sporting. Retrieved 19 March 2022.
  13. [13]
    "Sporting AC". Global Sports Archive. Retrieved 1 October 2022.
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This article uses material from the Wikipedia article AC_Sporting_Beirut, and is written by contributors. Text is available under a CC BY-SA 4.0 International License; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.