The IFA Shield is an annual
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
competition organized by the
Indian Football Association
The Indian Football Association, abbreviated as IFA, is the organisation that administers association football in the state of West Bengal, India. It is the oldest Football Association in India and was founded in 1893. Among the founders was form ...
. The
IFA
IFA or Ifa may refer to:
Organisations
Economics
* Independent financial adviser, a type of financial services professional in the UK
* Index Fund Advisors
* Institute and Faculty of Actuaries, representing actuaries in the UK
* Institute of Ac ...
is the governing body of
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
in the state of
West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fourt ...
, came into existence in 1893. Named after the association, the IFA Shield tournament was started in the same year. It is the
third oldest football tournament in India, after
Durand Cup
The Durand Football Tournament, commonly known as Durand Cup, is an annual domestic football competition in India which was first held in 1888 in Shimla. Hosted by the Durand Football Tournament Society (DFTS) and All India Football Federation ...
and
Trades Cup
The Trades Cup (also known as the Trades Challenge Cup or IFA Trades Challenge Cup) is an Indian football tournament held in Kolkata and organised by Indian Football Association. Incorporated in 1889, it is the second oldest football tournament i ...
, and the
one of the oldest football competitions in the world.
The royal houses of
Patiala
Patiala () is a city in southeastern Punjab, India, Punjab, northwestern India. It is the fourth largest city in the state and is the administrative capital of Patiala district. Patiala is located around the ''Qila Mubarak, Patiala, Qila Mubarak ...
and
Cooch Behar
Cooch Behar (), or Koch Bihar, is a city and a municipality in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the headquarters of the Cooch Behar district. It is in the foothills of the Eastern Himalayas at . Cooch Behar is the only planned city in the ...
, A.A. Apcar of
Armenian
Armenian may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent
** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...
Club and J Sutherland of
Dalhousie AC
Dalhousie Athletic Club is an Indian multi-sports club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. It was established in 1880, during the British rule in India. The club tent is located in Mayo Road, Kolkata Maidan, in Esplanade. Dalhousie competed in the Pre ...
had financially contributed for the inception of the Shield. The coveted shield was designed by Walter Locke & Co. (
Calcutta
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...
) and constructed by
Messrs Elkington & Co. (
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
).
During the initial years of the competition, the IFA Shield was dominated by British Army teams and the
Royal Irish Rifles
The Royal Irish Rifles (became the Royal Ulster Rifles from 1 January 1921) was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army, first created in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 83rd (County of Dublin) Regiment of Foot and the 86th (Royal County D ...
defeated W.D.R.A. to lift the first IFA Shield in 1893. However, their stranglehold over the Shield was broken in 1911, when
Mohun Bagan AC
Mohun Bagan Athletic Club is an Indian professional sports club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. Founded in 1889, its football section is one of the oldest in India and Asia. The club is most notable for its victory over East Yorkshire Regiment ...
became the first all-Indian side to win the IFA Shield by defeating
East Yorkshire Regiment
The East Yorkshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, first raised in 1685 as Sir William Clifton's Regiment of Foot and later renamed the 15th Regiment of Foot. It saw service for three centuries, before eventually being ...
by 2–1. That was a historic moment for Indian football as well the struggle for
independence
Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...
, as the natives beat the Englishmen in their own game. While the
Royal Irish Rifles
The Royal Irish Rifles (became the Royal Ulster Rifles from 1 January 1921) was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army, first created in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 83rd (County of Dublin) Regiment of Foot and the 86th (Royal County D ...
remains the most successful
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
side with 5 titles,
East Bengal Club
East Bengal Club, commonly referred to as East Bengal (), is an Indian professional Sports club, multi-sport club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. It is best known for its professional men's association football, football team that competes in t ...
has won the IFA Shield a record 29 times.
From 2015 to
2018
File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...
, the IFA Shield was designed as an youth tournament wherein youth teams of all divisions were allowed to participate. The decision was taken by
IFA
IFA or Ifa may refer to:
Organisations
Economics
* Independent financial adviser, a type of financial services professional in the UK
* Index Fund Advisors
* Institute and Faculty of Actuaries, representing actuaries in the UK
* Institute of Ac ...
due to busy schedule of
AIFF
Audio Interchange File Format (AIFF) is an audio file format standard used for storing sound data for personal computers and other electronic audio devices. The format was developed by Apple Inc. in 1988 based on Electronic Arts' Interchange File ...
which includes
Indian Super League
The Indian Super League (ISL) is an Indian professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the Indian football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Organised by the All India Football Federat ...
,
I-League
The I-League (known as Hero I-League for sponsorship ties with Hero MotoCorp) is the second-tier men's professional football competition of the Indian football league system. It is currently contested by 12 clubs across the country with the w ...
,
I-League 2nd Division
I-League 2, previously known as I-League 2nd Division and officially known as or Hero I-League 2 (for sponsorship ties with Hero MotoCorp), is an Indian men's professional football league. It is the 3rd tier of Indian football, behind Indian ...
,
State leagues and
Super Cup among others. In
2020
2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...
, the tournament was once again organised as a senior event.
Results
Pre-independence era (1893–1947)
Post-independence era (1948–present)
Notes:
:1.
Tournament not held.
:2.
Joint winners.
:3.
Abandoned.
:4.
Abandoned midway as Mohammedan Sporting refused to continue. Awarded to East Bengal.
:5.
Abandoned due to rain during the replay. Mohun Bagan
Mohun Bagan Athletic Club is an Indian professional sports club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. Founded in 1889, its football section is one of the oldest in India and Asia. The club is most notable for its victory over East Yorkshire Regiment ...
refused to play again and were scratched. Due to Mohun Bagan walkover, the Shield was awarded to East Bengal.
:6.
Abandoned after 35 minutes as Palmeiras
Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras (), commonly known as Palmeiras, is a Brazilian professional football club based in the city of São Paulo, in the district of Perdizes. Palmeiras is one of the most popular clubs in South America, with around ...
started a brawl on the pitch, match cancelled. Shield was awarded to East Bengal. Palmeiras
Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras (), commonly known as Palmeiras, is a Brazilian professional football club based in the city of São Paulo, in the district of Perdizes. Palmeiras is one of the most popular clubs in South America, with around ...
have been scratched from the record books.
:7.
Final abandoned.
:8.
An all-Indian side wins the Shield for the 1st time
:9.
Organised as an Under-19 tournament
:10.
Abandoned.
:11.
Awarded to Indian Culture League as East Bengal played with an unregistered player in the final.
:12.
Abandoned due to dispute among finalists over extra time.
Performance by teams
Performance by Indian teams
Though the tournament was dominated by the
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
teams during its initial years, yet
British Indian
British Indians are citizens of the United Kingdom (UK) whose ancestral roots are from India. This includes people born in the UK who are of Indian origin as well as Indians who have migrated to the UK. Today, Indians comprise about 1.4 mil ...
teams too participated representing
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
prior to the
independence
Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...
, but very few were an all-Indian side.
Mohun Bagan AC
Mohun Bagan Athletic Club is an Indian professional sports club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. Founded in 1889, its football section is one of the oldest in India and Asia. The club is most notable for its victory over East Yorkshire Regiment ...
was the first all-Indian side to win the tournament in 1911.
Top 10 Indian teams in IFA Shield
Performance by Overseas teams
*Winners:
**
Club Atlético Peñarol
Club may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Club (magazine), ''Club'' (magazine)
* Club, a ''Yie Ar Kung-Fu'' character
* Clubs (suit), a suit of playing cards
* Club music
* "Club", by Kelsea Ballerini from the album ''kelsea''
Brands a ...
(1985)
**
Pakhtakor Tashkent FK
FC Pakhtakor Tashkent ( uz, Paxtakor futbol klubi) is an Uzbek professional football club, based in the capital city Tashkent, that competes in the Uzbekistan Super League. Pakhtakor literally means "cotton-grower" in English.
Pakhtakor was the ...
(1993)
**
Finance and Revenue FC
Finance and Revenue Football Club (often shortened as F&R FC), currently known as Mountain Lion FC, and formerly known as Rangoon Customs, is a Burmese professional football club operated by the Ministry of Finance and Revenue of Myanmar. The clu ...
(2004)
**
FC Bayern Munich II
FC Bayern Munich II (''FC Bayern Munich Amateure'' until 2005) are the reserve team of German association football club FC Bayern Munich, they currently play in the Regionalliga Bayern. In 2010–11 they played in the 3. Liga, having qualified ...
(2005)
*Runners-up:
**
PAS Tehran FC (1970)
**
Pyongyang SC (1973)
**
FC Ararat Yerevan
Football Club Ararat Yerevan ( hy, Ֆուտբոլային Ակումբ Արարատ Երևան), commonly known as Ararat Yerevan, is an Armenian association football, football club based in Yerevan that plays in the Armenian Premier League.
Si ...
(1978)
**
FC Shakhtar Donetsk
Football Club Shakhtar Donetsk ( uk, Футбольний клуб «Шахтар» Донецьк , short nickname "miners") is a Ukrainian professional football club from the city of Donetsk. In 2014, due to the War in Donbass, the club was ...
(1985)
**
Irtysh Pavlodar FK (1993)
**
Mohammedan SC (1995)
**
Al-Karkh SC
Al-Karkh Sports Club ( ar, نادي الكرخ الرياضي) is an Iraqi sports club based in Karkh, Baghdad. Its professional football team plays in the Iraqi Premier League, the top tier of the Iraqi football. The club's home stadium is Al-S ...
(1996)
**
Palmeiras B (2001)
**
Santos FC
Santos Futebol Clube (), commonly known simply as Santos or Santos FC and nicknamed the ''Peixe'' (; "fish"), is a Brazilian sports club based in Vila Belmiro, a '' bairro'' in the city of Santos. It is also the team with the most goals i ...
(2008)
**
Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club
)
, founded =
, dissolved =
, ground = Sheikh Fazlul Haque Mani Stadium
, capacity = 5,000
, owntitle =
, owner =
, mgrtitle = Head Coach
, coach = Maruful Haque
, chairman = Safwan Sobhan Tasvir
, league = Bangladesh Premier Leagu ...
(
2014
File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...
)
Awards
Since the
123rd edition of the tournament, the awards for the Best Coach of the tournament, the Best Player of the tournament, the highest goalscorer of the tournament and Fair Play has been renamed in honour of India's football icons-
P. K. Banerjee
Pradip Kumar Banerjee (23 June 1936 – 20 March 2020) was an Indian professional footballer who played as a striker for the India national football team. He also captained the national team and later on became the coach of the national ...
,
Chuni Goswami
Subimal "Chuni" Goswami (15 January 1938 – 30 April 2020) was an Indian professional footballer and first-class cricketer. As footballer, he played as a striker or winger, captained both the Mohun Bagan club and the Indian national te ...
and
Krishanu Dey
Krishanu Dey ( bn, কৃশানু দে; 14 February 1962 – 20 March 2003) was an Indian footballer from Kolkata, India. He was an attacking midfielder and was known as the "Indian Maradona" among his fans due to his footballing skills an ...
, and renowned
sports photojournalist – Ronojoy 'Ronny' Roy.
Krishanu Dey Memorial Award
'
P. K. Banerjee Memorial Award for the Best Coach
'
Chuni Goswami Memorial Award for the Best Player
'
Ronny Roy Fair Play Award
'
See also
*
List of oldest football competitions
This is a list of the oldest documented football competition
Competition is a rivalry where two or more parties strive for a common goal which cannot be shared: where one's gain is the other's loss (an example of which is a zero-sum gam ...
References
Bibliography
*
External links
India - List of IFA Shield Finals rsssf.com
The Glorious History Of IFA Shield By Somnath Sengupta thehardtackle.com
{{Football in India
Football cup competitions in India
Football competitions in Kolkata
1893 establishments in India
Recurring sporting events established in 1893