Nkana FC is a

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

Kitwe Kitwe is the third largest city in terms of infrastructure development (after Lusaka and Ndola) and second largest city in terms of size and population (after Lusaka) in Zambia. With a population of 517,543 (''2010 census provisional'') Kitwe is ...

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most cent ...

. The football team is competing in the MTN/FAZ Super Division, and is regarded as one of the country's most popular teams. Nkana FC has won 13 League titles, which made it to be Zambia's most successful league club, and second overall behind

Mufulira Wanderers Mufulira Wanderers are Zambia's most successful football club, based in the Copperbelt town of Mufulira and currently playing in the Zambia National Division One after their 2019/2020 season relegation. Popularly known as Mighty Mufulira Wan ...

, with 46 trophies. They play their home games at

Nkana Stadium Nkana Stadium, previously known as Scrivener Stadium, is a multi-use stadium in Kitwe, Zambia. It serves as home stadium for MTN/FAZ Super League side Nkana F.C. The stadium underwent extensive renovations in 2013 that were sponsored by Mopani ...

in Wusakile, Kitwe. The club is currently sponsored by

Mopani Copper Mines Mopani Copper Mines PLC ("Mopani") is a Zambian registered company 100% owned by ZCCM Investment Holdings. Mopani Copper Mines PLC was previously owned by Carlisa Investments Corporation (a joint venture company comprising Glencore Internation ...

who are the major owners. The Football club has also acquired a Kit sponsorship deal with global online gambling company Betway. However, controversies have surrounded the major sponsors of the club, in 2020 after the increase in the number of Covid-19 cases recorded in Zambia, the sponsors Mopani Copper Mines Plc reduced the sponsorship deal to the club by 50 percent citing the failing of the Copper prices due to the pandemic. The club decided to sign other sponsorship deals with The Zambia Revenue Authority and The Copperbelt University Nkana FC have the biggest fan base in Zambia, it's die hard fans used to be known for their noisy and passionate support of their club. Otherwise, Before the Launch of the '''Stop Hooliganism in football Campaign by the MTN/FAZ Super League Teams' Supporters Associations, it was always the tradition of the Nkana Fans to escalate violence especially after their team conceded a goal or Lost a football match in a questionable state of officiating the events which led to the Club being fined multiple times by the Zambian FA.

History

Nkana FC is one of Zambia’s oldest football clubs having been formed in 1935 in Kitwe's Wusakile township. The club was founded under the name of Rhokana United FC before it changed to Nkana Red Devils. In 1990, they were runners-up in the African Cup of Champions, the only Zambian team to ever reach the finals. Nkana had a long history of success during the 1980s and early 1990s, winning nine league titles from 1982 to 1993. Coached by Moses Simwala, a number of prominent players ran out for Nkana during this time frame. Nkana were Relegated from the top flight for the first time in their history in 2004, and their period in

Division One The Football League First Division was a division of the Football League in England from 1888 until 2004. It was the top division in the English football league system from the season 1888–89 until 1991–92, a century in which the First ...

was plagued by financial problems. However Nkana returned to the top flight after winning the 2007

North title. Over the years, Nkana have accumulated a record of success having won the MTN/FAZ Super League Thirteen times, most recently in 2020. On 23 May 2014, head coach Masautso Mwale died in a road traffic accident on the eve of the home game against Séwé Sport of the Ivory Coast in the Group B in the

2014 CAF Confederation Cup The 2014 CAF Confederation Cup (also known as the 2014 Orange CAF Confederation Cup for sponsorship reasons) was the 11th edition of the CAF Confederation Cup, Africa's secondary club football competition organized by the Confederation of African F ...

. The accident occurred near Maposa area and his car overturned several times as he was driving back to join the team in camp in

Rivals

Apparently every team that plays in Zambia's top flight is a rival to Nkana FC but their Archrivals are

Power Dynamos F.C. Power Dynamos is a Zambian football club based in Kitwe that plays in the MTN/FAZ Super Division. They play their home games at Arthur Davies Stadium in Kitwe. The club is currently sponsored by Copperbelt Energy Corporation. Power Dynamo ...

with whom they share the City with and the two teams are just separated by the Kitwe-Ndola dual carriage way. When the two teams meet, the city is divided & the winners in the Kitwe Derby or ''El Kopala'' get the city bragging rights.

Achievements

* African Cup of Champions Clubs Runners-up: **1990 *

Zambian Premier League The Zambia Super League, known as the MTN Super League for sponsorship purposes, is the top association football league created in 1962 by the Football Association of Zambia. The winners of the league each season receives ZMW500,000 ($26,414.20) ...

: 13 **1982, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1999, 2001, 2013, 2020 *

Zambian Cup According to records from the RSSSF, there were many association football cup competitions organized in Zambia since 1962, some of which are the Independence Cup, the Zambian Challenge Cup (both organized in 1961), the Champion of Champions Cup ( ...

: 6 **1986, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993, 2000 * ABSA Cup: 1 **2018 *

Zambian Charity Shield The Zambian Charity Shield officially called Samuel ‘Zoom’ Ndhlovu Charity Shield since 2003 is a season opener match between the champions of the previous Super League season and the holders of the ABSA Cup. If the Super League champions al ...

: 13 **1982, 1983, 1984, 1987, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 2000, 2014, 2018, 2019, 2020 *

Zambian Challenge Cup According to records from the RSSSF, there were many association football cup competitions organized in Zambia since 1962, some of which are the Independence Cup, the Zambian Challenge Cup (both organized in 1961), the Champion of Champions Cup ( ...

: 6 **1966 (as Rhokana United) **1992, 1993, 1998, 1999, 2000 *

Heinrich Cup/Chibuku Cup/Heroes and Unity Cup Heinrich may refer to: People * Heinrich (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Heinrich (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) *Hetty (given name), a given name (including a list of peo ...

: 5 **1969, 1974, 1989, 1990, 1993 *

Zambian Champion of Champions Cup Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are ...

: 2 **1986, 1993

Performance in CAF competitions

CAF Champions League The CAF Champions League, known for sponsorship purposes as the TotalEnergies CAF Champions League and formerly the African Cup of Champions Clubs, is an annual football club competition organized by the Confederation of African Football and co ...

: 3 appearances ::

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

– Second Round ::

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

– Second Round ::

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 ...

– Second Round *

African Cup of Champions Clubs The CAF Champions League, known for sponsorship purposes as the TotalEnergies CAF Champions League and formerly the African Cup of Champions Clubs, is an annual football club competition organized by the Confederation of African Football and cont ...

: 9 appearances ::

1983 The year 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to Internet protocol suite, TCP/IP is officially completed (this is consid ...

: Semi-Finals ::

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast A ...

: Quarter-Finals ::

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal ente ...

: Semi-Finals ::

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...

: Second Round ::

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress Street Viaduct, Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxo ...

: Semi-Finals ::

1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...

: ''Finalist'' ::

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...

: Semi-Finals ::

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...

: Quarter-Finals ::

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...

: Quarter-Finals ::

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which Sinking of the MS Estonia, sank in ...

: Semi-Finals *

CAF Cup Winners' Cup The African Cup Winners' Cup was a football competition that started in 1975 and merged with the CAF Cup in 2004 to form the CAF Confederation Cup. It was a competition between the winning clubs of domestic cups in CAF-affiliated nations and was ...

: 2 appearances ::1998 – Quarter-Finals ::2001 – Second Round *

CAF Cup The CAF Cup was an annual competition organised by the CAF for domestic leagues runners-up of member associations who have not qualified to the pre-existing CAF international club competition the African Cup of Champions Clubs. History The tou ...

: 1 appearance ::1999 – Second Round

Former coaches

* Gaston Mutobo *

Jeff Butler Jeff Butler (born February 26, 1958, in Madison, Wisconsin) is an American illustrator and comic book artist. Butler worked with the art department of TSR, Inc. for 5 years, illustrating products for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role- ...

* Beston Chambeshi * Jericho Shinde *

Moses Simwala Moses Simwala (16 July 1949 – 19 September 1993) was a Zambian footballer and coach. Nicknamed 'the chairman,' Simwala featured for Zambia and Rhokana United (later Nkana Red Devils and now Nkana F.C.) as a right winger, the same club he woul ...

(1980–93) * Patrick Phiri (1997–02) *

Ben Bamfuchile Ben Bamfuchile (12 April 1960 – 27 December 2007), also known as Ben Pabili, was a Zambian football defender and coach. Bamfuchile played for the Nkana Red Devils in the 1980s and later coached the same team, as well as the Zambia national fo ...

* Kenneth Malitoli (2007) * Masauso Mwale (2013–14) * Zeddy Saileti * Manfred Chabinga

References

{{Zambian Premier League Football clubs in Zambia Association football clubs established in 1932 1935 establishments in Northern Rhodesia Kitwe