Invercargill Thistle also known as Thistle FC is an established football club based in the

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...

city of

Invercargill Invercargill ( , mi, Waihōpai is the southernmost and westernmost city in New Zealand, and one of the southernmost cities in the world. It is the commercial centre of the Southland region. The city lies in the heart of the wide expanse of t ...

. The team was founded in 1936 and currently have 13 teams from Men's premier, Women's, and Junior divisions. During the 1960s Thistle was one of the southern South Island's stronger teams, reaching the semi-finals of the

Chatham Cup The Chatham Cup is New Zealand's premier knockout tournament in men's association football. It is held annually, with the final contested in September. The current champions of the Chatham Cup are 2022 winners Auckland City, who defeated Eastern ...

on two occasions, in

1967 Events January * January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair. * January 5 ** Spain and Romania sign an agreement in Paris, establishing full consular and ...

and

1969 This year is notable for Apollo 11's first landing on the moon. Events January * January 4 – The Government of Spain hands over Ifni to Morocco. * January 5 **Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes into a house on its approach to ...

. The team spent one season in the

New Zealand National Soccer League The New Zealand National League is the name given to the current New Zealand top football competition. Originally set up as the New Zealand National Soccer League there has been many versions of the competition as well as many different names. Th ...

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...

. In the 2018 season the club currently run a team in the Southland premier Donald Gray competition, Division 1, and Division 2. They also have a team in the Sunday women's competition as well as a full complement of Junior teams. Based out of Islington Street Invercargill, Thistle FC is the oldest and most successful club in Southland Football.

References

Ultimatenzsoccer.com Invercargill Thistle page
Defunct association football clubs in New Zealand Association football clubs established in 1936 1936 establishments in New Zealand 1997 disestablishments in New Zealand Association football clubs in Invercargill {{NewZealand-footyclub-stub