NEROCA FC is an Indian professional

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 ...

club based in Imphal, Manipur, that competes in the I-League. The club made its I-League 2nd Division debut in the 2015–16 season. The club won the

2016–17 I-League 2nd Division The 2016–17 I-League 2nd Division was the tenth season of the I-League 2nd Division, the second-tier Indian league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 2008. The season began on 21 January 2017 and featured 12 teams whi ...

and secured promotion to the I-League. NEROCA is the only club from Northeast India to reach the final of the coveted Durand Cup. The club also competes in the Manipur State League.

History

Formation and early years

North Eastern Re-Organising Cultural Association (NEROCA) was established in 1965 with the hope of improving quality in the field of cultural activities and sports in the Indian state of Manipur. It was registered under the Manipur State co-operative Society Registration Act bearing registration No. 1016 of 1972. NEROCA is a registered football club of ''Imphal East District Football Association'' and affiliated with All Manipur Football Association (AMFA). NEROCA has participated in the Manipur State League (MSL), since its inception and finished second-placed in the MSL 2007.

2014–present

In the 9th season of Manipur State League (2014), NEROCA won the championship trophy. With the aim of participating in the I-League 2nd Division from 2015–16. As per the norms of

All India Football Federation The All India Football Federation (AIFF) is the national governing body of football in India. It is a member of FIFA, the international governing body of football and affiliated to Asian Football Confederation. It is affiliated to Ministry o ...

(AIFF), the nomenclature of NEROCA was changed to NEROCA Football Club. NEROCA competed in the 2015–16 and 2016–17 I-League 2nd Division seasons. They emerged as champions of the 2016–17 season with 26 points in 10 matches from the Final Round, and qualified for the 2017–18 season of the I-League. They also clinched the title of Manipur State League in

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

. The biggest achievement of NEROCA is emerging as the runners-up in the

2017–18 I-League The 2017–18 I-League was the 11th season of the I-League. Aizawl were the defending champions. NEROCA entered as the promoted team from the 2016–17 I-League 2nd Division. The season began on 25 November 2017. Teams All India Football Feder ...

. Under the coaching of Gift Raikhan, they finished campaign with 32 points from 18 matches. In that season, NEROCA brought Vector X as their official shirt sponsor. In the

2020–21 I-League The 2020–21 I-League (known as the ''Hero I-League'' for sponsorship reasons) was the 14th season of the I-League, one of the top tier Indian professional football leagues, since its establishment in 2007. The tournament was hosted in bio-sec ...

, NEROCA finished bottom of the

Relegation Stage In sports leagues, promotion and relegation is a process where teams are transferred between multiple divisions based on their performance for the completed season. Leagues that use promotion and relegation systems are often called open leagues. ...

and got formally relegated, but were reinstated by AIFF after viewing the situation of Covid-19 pandemic. On 4 July 2021, NEROCA signed

Khogen Singh Wangkhem Khogen Singh is a former Indian football player and current head coach of I-League club NEROCA. He was head coach of I-League side, Minerva Punjab, whom he led to the 2017–18 title. Playing career Born in Manipur, Singh has ...

as their head coach for the 2021–22 I-League season, and began the league journey with a 3–2 win against

Sreenidi Deccan Sreenidi Deccan Football Club is an Indian professional football club based in Hyderabad, Telangana. Established on 1 January 2015 as a football academy at Hyderabad and launched from Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh in 2021, the club currently co ...

on 27 December 2021. They achieved seventh position in league table. They later participated in

2022 Durand Cup The 2022 Durand Cup, also known as IndianOil Durand Cup due to sponsorship ties with Indian Oil Corporation, was the 131st edition of Durand Cup, the oldest football tournament in Asia, and also the first edition since it was recognised by the ...

Crest and colours

In the official club crest, there is map of Manipur in background and an anchor of sailing boat in foreground. The official colours of NEROCA are orange and green.

Kit manufacturers and shirt sponsors

Stadium

Khuman Lampak Main Stadium in Imphal, Manipur, is used as the home ground of NEROCA Football Club for all their home matches in both the domestic and regional leagues. Opened in 1999, the stadium is owned by All Manipur Football Association and has a capacity of 35,285 spectators. Their first home match in the I-League was played on 15 December 2017 against Chennai City FC.

Support and rivalry

Supporters

NEROCA had the 2nd highest average attendance for the 2018–19 I League season. In the 2017–18 season, NEROCA had the highest attendance in the I-League.

Rivalries

NEROCA have participated in the Imphal Derby with city rivals

TRAU Transcoder and Rate Adaptation Unit or TRAU, performs transcoding function for speech channels and RA (Rate Adaptation) for data channels in the GSM network. The Transcoder/Rate Adaptation Unit (TRAU) is the data rate conversion unit. The PSTN/IS ...

. The two clubs are the only two from Imphal to have played professional league football. The Imphal Derby gained fame in 2022 during the 131st edition of Durand Cup when competitive football returned to the city after COVID-19 pandemic in India. The Government of Manipur declared a half-holiday for all governmental and educational institutions in build-up to the match on 18 August, where NEROCA defeated TRAU by 3–1 in Group-C opener. In the

Northeast Derby (I-League) Northeast Derby is the name given to the football matches played among the northeastern I-League teams Aizawl, TRAU and NEROCA. Aizawl was first promoted to I-League in 2015-16 season followed by NEROCA and TRAU in 2017-18 and 2019–20 r ...

, they have a rivalry with Mizoram-based club

Aizawl FC Aizawl FC is an Indian professional football club based in Aizawl, Mizoram, that competes in the I-League. Incorporated in 1984, the club earned the entry in India's top-tier league in 2015–16, after winning 2015 I-League 2nd Division. Nickn ...

Players

First-team squad

On loan

Personnel

Current technical staff

Team records

;Key *Tms. = Number of teams *Pos. = Position in league *Attendance/G = Average league attendance

Overall records

updated on 28 May 2017

Top scorer

updated on 16 August 2021

Past and present internationals

*The players below had senior international cap(s) for their respective countries. Players whose name is listed, represented their countries before or after playing for ''NEROCA FC''.

India

Sushil Kumar Singh Chongtham Sushil Kumar Singh is an India football player. He is currently playing for NEROCA F.C. in Manipur's local statewide league. Career Mahindra United Singh started his footballing career at Mahindra United in the I-League and scored ...

(2016–2018) * Govin Singh (2016–2018) * Gouramangi Singh (2017–2018)

Asia

Chencho Gyeltshen Chencho Gyeltshen (born 10 May 1996) is a Bhutanese professional footballer who plays as a forward for I-League club RoundGlass Punjab and captains the Bhutan national team. Gyeltshen is the all-time leading international goalscorer for Bhu ...

(2019) * Akhlidin Israilov (2017) * Abhishek Rijal (2020–2021) * Prakash Budhathoki (2020–2021) * Mohamad Kdouh (2020–2022) *

Bektur Talgat Uulu Bektur Talgat Uulu (born 9 September 1994) is a Kyrgyz professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for I-League club NEROCA. Career In January 2017, Uulu signed for Churchill Brothers. Uulu made his professional debut in India, playing ...

(2022–)

North America

Fabien Vorbe Jean Francis Fabien Vorbe (born 4 January 1990) is a Haitian professional footballer who last played for NEROCA F.C. in the I-League. Career Youth and College Vorbe began his career in 2005 with first division Haitian club Violette AC at age ...

(2017–2018) * Judah García (2020–2021) * Marvin Phillip (2019–2020) *

Nathaniel Garcia , nickname = {{Plainlist, * Nat * Nate , footnotes = Nathaniel is an English variant of the biblical Greek name Nathanael. People with the name Nathaniel * Nathaniel Archibald (1952–2018), American basketball player * Nat ...

(2020–2021) *

Richard Roy Richard Roy is a Canadian director, actor and screenwriter. He has directed several feature films in French as well as television films and series for the English-language market. He was raised in the village of Saint-Agapit, in Lotbinière Re ...

(2017–2018) * Taryk Sampson (2019–2020) * Jourdaine Fletcher (2022–)

Africa

* Varney Kallon (2016–2019, 2020) * Eduardo Ferreira (2018–2019) * Boubacar Diarra (2019–2020) * Gaty Kouami (2019–2020) * David Simbo (2022–)

Managerial record

''Information correct after match played on 7 March 2022. Only competitive matches are counted.''

Honours

League

* I-League **Runners-up (1): 2017–18 * I-League 2nd Division **Champions (1): 2016–17 **Third place (1): 2015–16 * Manipur State League **Champions (2):

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 ...

**Runners-up (1): 2009

Cup

* Durand Cup **Runners-up (1):

* Tiddim Invitation Football Trophy **Champions (1): 2004 **Runners-up (2): 2005, 2007 * Churachand Singh Trophy **Champions (6): 2000, 2012–13, 2014–15, 2016, 2018–19, 2019 **Runners-up (2): 2002, 2008 *

Bodousa Cup The Bodousa Cup is an invitational football tournament in India, held across multiple venues of Assam and organised by Bodousa Sports Club annually under the supervision of Assam Football Association. The tournament was incorporated in 2009 and ...

**Runners-up (2): 2010, 2015 * Shirui Lily Cup **Runners-up (1): 2011