Kelantan Football Club () was a Malaysian professional football club based in Kota Bharu, Kelantan. Founded in 1948 as Kelantan Amateur Football Association.Kelantan want to be in Cup soccer, The Singapore Free Press, 21 August 1951, Page 7 The club had a long-standing rivalry with Terengganu. The two east coast clubs were involved in the East Coast Derby. Their home was the then 22,000-seat Sultan Muhammad IV Stadium. Kelantan's regular kit colours were red shirt and shorts with a white pattern on the side.
The club had their first major success in the 2012 season, when they won the treble (Super League, Malaysia FA Cup and Malaysia Cup). Domestically, the club has won 2 Malaysia Super League, 1 Malaysia Premier League, 2 Malaysia FA Cup, 2 Malaysia Cup and 1 Charity Shield title. Kelantan made their continental debut playing in the AFC Cup. They won the first place in the group stage. However, the club lost in the quarter final to Erbil SC 6–2 on aggregate.
Kelantan had obtained the FAM Club License to play in the 2018 Malaysia Super League season. On 17 January 2024, Kelantan F.C. was expelled from the Malaysia Super League over the financial problems.
History
Kelantan Football Club was founded in 1948 as Kelantan Amateur Football Association. KAFA won the first cup in 1953 when they won the Malaysia FAM Cup and retained the cup for the next year. In 1963, KAFA played in the final Malaysia FAM Cup but lost to Singapore. By the period of the 70s, The club had been unlucky when they lost three cup finals (Malaysia cup 1970, FAM cup 1971 and 1972). In 1972 Dali Omar became the first Kelantanese-born player who played abroad, joining Perth Azurri. The former chief minister of Kelantan, Ahmad Rastom Ahmad Maher, was appointed as the president in 1986. 5 years later, the former Kelantan state secretary Wan Hashim Wan Daud took over the position, until 2024. By 2005, Kelantan was relegated to the third-tier Malaysia FAM League.
2009 season
2009 was the Kelantan debut season in the Malaysia Super League after promotion from the Malaysia Premier League. They obtained 6th spot in the league with 44 points. During the Malaysia FA Cup final, they have lost to Selangor 1–4. Malaysia Cup became their second final for the season, but they lost to Negeri Sembilan.
2010 season
The team gained second place in the Malaysia Super League with 59 points. The top scorer was Norshahrul Idlan with 14 goals. Kelantan's 89-year cup drought ended in the 2010 Malaysia Cup after defeating Negeri Sembilan 2–1. B. Sathianathan refused to commit his future to the newly crowned Malaysia Cup champions. Their campaign in the 2009 Malaysia FA Cup ended when Kedah advanced to next round based on away goals rule.
2011 season
Kelantan started their 2011 season by beating Selangor 2–0 in the Charity Shield match held at the Shah Alam Stadium, with the goals scored by Norshahrul Idlan and Badhri Radzi. In the Malaysia FA Cup campaign, Kelantan lost to Terengganu 1–2 in the final. During the Malaysia Super League campaign, Kelantan won the title for the first time. Therefore, they qualified for the 2012 AFC Cup. Norshahrul Idlan became the top scorer for the team. Kelantan's Malaysia Cup campaign ended in the quarter-finals as they lost to Terengganu with 5–3 on aggregate.
2012 season
In the 2012 season, the team clinched their second successive Malaysia Super League title after thrashing Perak 6–0 at home. During the 2012 Malaysia Cup campaign, they won the final against ATM. The historical win completed a treble.
2013 season
Kelantan started the season with a defeat to ATM in the Charity Shield match. They got 1 win, 3 draws, and 1 loss in the first 5 matches.
In the 2013 Malaysia FA Cup, the team met Johor Darul Ta'zim in the final, after defeating Terengganu with 6–5 on aggregate. They defeated Sarawak in the quarter-finals with 4–1 on aggregate. During the final, the sole goal was scored by Nor Farhan Muhammad 15 minutes into the game. With this victory Kelantan successfully retained their Malaysia FA Cup title for the second year.
2014 season
Kelantan started the season with a win against Sime Darby at their home ground, Sultan Muhammad IV Stadium. Steve Darby was replaced by George Boateng after a big lost 0–4 to Sime Darby. Ghanaian forward Prince Tagoe signed with Kelantan after the departure of Mohammed Ghaddar. He only made 3 appearances before being released due to poor performance.
2015 season
Kelantan began the 2015 season with a 2–0 win over ATM at Majlis Perbandaran Selayang Stadium. Their 2015 Malaysia Super League ended at 9th place with 8 wins, 4 draws and 10 losses. They became the 2015 Malaysia FA Cup runners-up after losing 1–3 to LionsXII. Their 2015 Malaysia Cup ended in 3rd place in group C. George Boateng was replaced by Azraai Khor on 24 March. On 4 July, Azraai Khor resigned and was replaced by Zahasmi Ismail. Wan Zaharulnizam became the first player to win PFAM Player of the Month. Brazilian Gilmar became their top scorer with 11 goals.
2016 season
The team started the season with a 0–0 draw against Perak. Their 2016 Malaysia Super League campaign ended at 4th place, with 7 wins, 8 draws and 7 losses, 29 points collected. Their 2016 Malaysia FA Cup journey ended at the round of 16 after losing to Kedah. The Malaysia Cup campaign ended with elimination in the quarter-finals. Head coach K. Devan resigned on 12 May, being replaced by Velizar Popov. Baze Ilijoski became top scorer of the team with 16 goals. This season also saw a change in the club presidency after Tan Sri Annuar Musa decided to quit, with the position temporarily held by the vice-president Afandi Hamzah.
2017 season
On 30 November 2016, Zahasmi Ismail was appointed the new head coach. Kelantan almost got relegated, but came strong during last match with a 1–3 win over Melaka United, and finished at the 10th position.
2020 season On 6 September 2020, the club was purchased by businessman Norizam Tukiman for RM 6.8 million.
2021 season For 2021, as part of the effort to revamp the club, they appointed all new coaching staff. Norizam Tukiman expanded his empire by purchasing an Indonesian club, PSPS Riau. The acquisition opened up opportunities for both clubs to establish a long-term cooperation.
2022 season During 2022 Malaysia Premier League, Kelantan finished second and got promoted after 5 years.
2023 season For the 2023 season, Kelantan appointed Choi Moon-Sik as new head coach. They also participated in the 2023 ASEAN Charity Shield against Buriram United. They conceded the most goals in the history of the Malaysian League (121), thus occupying the lowest position in the league.
Sponsorship Title and shirt sponsors SeasonKit manufacturerShirt sponsor1986Schwarzenbach1987–1988PumaDunhill / Puma1989–1990DiadoraDunhill / EON1991Saller1992Mizuno1993Le Coq Sportif1994UmbroDunhill1995Reebok1996–1999Asics2000–2002Kronos2003Mizuno2004Eepro2005EutagPerodua2005–06Celcom2006–072007–08NikeCelcom/Redland2009SportzoneTM/Al Hamra2010Umbro2011Happy/Warrior2012Happy/Yusmira2013WarriorsHotlink/AzizanOsman.com2014Hotlink/Kicap Adabi2015Chengal Jati/Kicap Adabi2016DSVPamoga Qu Puteh/Chengal Jati2017HORCRed One/Al Hamra & Chengal Jati2018LottoBMW (Raza Premium Auto)2019PUC2020PUC, TRW & FitechAfter Image/Nexy/Cleantech Oil/Ico-fresh/Zamburger2021–2293 Sports93 Sports/Zamburger/Hotel Zamburger/Radio Zamburger2023Skygear/Hotel Zamburger
Affiliated clubs Cardiff City Blackburn Rovers FC Bari 1908
AFC Cup competition 2012 season
2012 was Kelantan's AFC Cup debut, in group G with Arema Cronous, Ayeyawady United and Navibank Sài Gòn. The team was on top of the table with 13 points in 6 matches. Terengganu was defeated by Kelantan in the round of 16 by 3–2. During quarter-finals, Kelantan lost to Erbil SC from Iraq 6–2 on aggregate. Mohammed Ghaddar was the team top scorer with 8 goals.
2013 season
Kelantan started their campaign on 6 March with 1–1 draw against Maziya. Their goal was scored by Badhri Radzi. Kelantan has gained first place in group G with SHB Đà Nẵng, Maziya and Ayeyawady United. In the round of 16 they were defeated by Kitchee SC by 2–0.
2014 season
Kelantan was drawn into group G along with South China, Yangon United and Vissai Ninh Bình. They finished bottom of the group with 3 points from 6 matches. On 26 February, the team started their AFC campaign with a 5–3 loss to Yangon United. Wan Zaharulnizam scored 1 goal and 2 more goals came from the captain Badhri Radzi. Wan Zaharulnizam became the top scorer of the team during the 2014 campaign with 3 goals.
Stadium
Sultan Muhammad IV Stadium is the oldest football field in Malaysia and probably the oldest in Asia, based on the use of field. The stadium was built in 1967.
Season-by-season records SeasonLeague Charity Shield Malaysia FA Cup Malaysia CupAFC CupTop scorerDivisionPWDLFAPtsPosNameGoals1989DIV 116231182699th –N/a – –1990DIV 2149233815292nd – – – –Hashim MustaphaBoonphop Praphut131991DIV 118611124401910th – – – –1992DIV 2145452718193rd – – – –Dariusz Dudala91993DIV 1185493134196th – –SF –Hashim Mustapha131994PL28117104842409th – –GS –Hashim Mustapha251995PL28581531492315th – – – –Hashim Mustapha111996PL28451918521715th – – – –1997PL28841633582813th –R2 – –1998PL214662201624 3rd –R2 – –1999PL21875Draw were followed by penalty shootouts for an additional point.62326295th –QF – –2000PL2181062482136 1st –R2QF –Anuar Abu Bakar152001PL1221156332138 3rd –R1SF –Anuar Abu Bakar72002PL126931429413010th –R2GS –Worrawoot Srimaka152003PL124771031522810th –R1GS –Fatrurazi Rozi72004MPL241716134210 9th –R1 – –Khairul Zal Azmi32005FAM League (Champions) –QF – –2005–06MPL217593335266th –R2 – –2006–07MPL204882331208th –R2GS –2007–08MPL2416535930533rd –R1GS –Mohamed Moustapha272009MSL26142104936446th –RURU –Indra Putra Mahayuddin142010MSL2617815014592nd –R2W –Norshahrul Idlan112011MSL2617545221561stWRUQF –Norshahrul Idlan182012MSL261862531860 1stRUWWQFMohammed Ghaddar92013MSL2210663220364th RU WRUR16Badhri Radzi Indra Putra Mahayuddin Nor Farhan Muhammad62014MSL22101112629316th –SFQFGSFrancis Doe52015MSL2284103438289th –RUGS –Gilmar62016MSL227873733294th –R3QF –Blazhe Ilijoski142017MSL22741131392210th –R2GS –Mohammed Ghaddar182018MSL22531420431811th –R3QF –Shafiq Shaharudin62019MPL2048823321710th----Nik Akif52020MPL115331411156th--R1-Felix Chidi Odili42021MPL208392328276th--GS-Nurshamil Abd Ghani92022MPL181143271437 2nd-R1QF-Nurshamil Abd Ghani102023MSL21221724878QFR16
ChampionsRunners-upThird PlacePromotedRelegated
P = Played W = Games won D = Games drawn L = Games lost F = Goals for A = Goals against Pts = Points Pos = Final position N/A = Not available
MSL = Malaysia Super League MPL = Malaysia Premier League PL1 = Premier League 1 PL2 = Premier League 2 PL = Premier League
R1 = Round 1 R2 = Round 2 R3 = Round 3
R4 = Round 4 R5 = Round 5 R6 = Round 6 R16 = Round of 16 GR = Group Stage QF = Quarter-finals SF = Semi-finals RU = Runners-up S = Shared W = Winners
Individual player awards Golden Boot winners SeasonPlayerGoals1992 Dariusz Dudala91993 Hashim Mustapha131994 Hashim Mustapha252000 Anuar Abu Bakar152007–08 Mohamed Moustapha27
Club top goalscorers SeasonPlayerGoals2007–08 Mohamed Moustapha32 2009 Indra Putra Mahayuddin302010 Norshahrul Idlan142011 Norshahrul Idlan242012 Mohammed Ghaddar212013 Badhri Radzi162014Francis Doe132015 Gilmar112016 Blazhe Ilijoski162017 Mohammed Ghaddar182018 Shafiq Shaharudin72019 Nik Akif52020 Felix Chidi Odili42021 Nurshamil Abd Ghani92022 Nurshamil Abd Ghani10
Honours International competitions AFC Cup: 3 appearances 2012: Quarter-finals (lost 2–6 on aggregate to Arbil) 2013: Round of 16 (lost 0–2 to Kitchee) 2014: Group stage (4th position)
Domestic competitions League Division 1/ Malaysia Super League Winners (2): 2011, 2012 Runners-up (1): 2010 Division 2/ Malaysia Premier League Winners (1): 2000 Runners-up (2): 1990, 2022 Division 3/ Malaysia FAM League