Odisha Football Club Women () is an Indian professional women's football club based in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, that competes in the Indian Women's League 2, the second tier of Indian women's football. Odisha FC Women were founded in 2022, when the Indian Super League side Odisha FC announced the formation of their women's side.

Odisha played their first-ever home match on 27 November 2022 at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar, registering a 1–0 victory over East Coast Railway in the Odisha Women's League, the premier women's football competition in the state. Building on that strong start, the club went on to clinch the 2022–23 Odisha Women's League, securing the first silverware in their history and earning qualification to the Indian Women's League, the highest tier of women's professional football in India.

In a remarkable rise, Odisha lifted the 2023–24 Indian Women's League title in just their second season at the top level. The triumph also secured their maiden qualification to the inaugural 2024–25 AFC Women's Champions League, marking the club's historic debut on the continental stage.

History With an aim to have a professional women's team from Odisha, one of the major hotbeds of Indian women's football, Odisha FC club brought in an experienced football administrator, Randeep Baruah, as their Head of academy & Women's Football, to structure the women's football department. In 2022, on the holy occasion of Ratha Yatra, the Indian Super League (ISL) club Odisha FC announced the launch of their senior women's team. On the same day, the club announced the appointment of AFC A-Licensed coach and former player, Crispin Chettri, as team's first Head Coach.

Odisha FC Women kicked-off their professional football journey with participating in the 2022–23 Odisha Women's League, the top division women's football league of Odisha. Odisha played their first ever match on 27 November 2022, with a 1–0 win against East Coast Railway at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar. The club went on to win their first regional siverware with winning the Odisha Women's League title with a perfect record of with 10 wins from 10 games, to qualify for the 2022–23 Indian Women's League. Pyari Xaxa ended up as the top scorer for the side with 11 goals in 10 games.

In the 2022–23 Indian Women's League season, Odisha finished third in the group stage of the competition, qualifying for the knockout stage with a total of 16 points with 5 wins, 1 draw, and 1 loss. Odisha faced defending champions Gokulam Kerala in the quarter-finals, which ended up 1–1 at the end of regular time, however, Odisha lost 0–3 on penalties, bowing out of the league. Despite ending up on the losing side in the quarter-final, Odisha directly qualified for the 2023–24 Indian Women's League season, as direct qualification was awarded to teams which qualified for the knockout round and finished in the top eight positions in the 2022–23 season.

In their second season in top-flight football since inception, Odisha won their first-ever national division silverware by winning the 2023–24 Indian Women's League title. Odisha ended up with 31 points from 12 games, qualifying for the 2024–25 AFC Women's Champions League, Asia's premier club women's football tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Pyari Xaxa ended up as the top scorer for Odisha with 8 goals, followed by Win Theingi Tun with 7 goals to her name. Later in FIFA also congratulated the Odisha FC Women side for their outstanding performance in the Indian Women's League, crowning them as the Champions of India.

In the 2024–25 Indian Women's League season, Odisha began as defending champions after winning the title in 2023–24, but endured a difficult campaign marked by inconsistent form and a long winless run. Odisha ended up with 12 points from 14 games, ultimately finishing in 7th in the league resulting in relegation from the top flight, a rare fall for reigning champions in Indian women's club football. Lynda Kom ended up as the top scorer for Odisha with 7 goals to her name.

Club crest and kits Crest

On 15 September 2019, Odisha unveiled their official logo embodying the heritage and the culture of the state of Odisha and the vision and the ideology of its parent company, GMS Inc. The design for the crest is inspired from the Chakras or the chariot wheels of the famous Konark Sun Temple, a World Heritage Site in Odisha which represents movement and development; the ship design represents GMS, the world's largest buyer of ships and offshore assets, and the owner of the club.

Kit manufacturers and shirt sponsors PeriodKit manufacturerShirt sponsorSleeve sponsor2022–23Trak-OnlyOdisha TourismSerajuddin & Co.2023–242024–25iServeU2025–26–Leela WorldwideLila Worldwide

Kit evolution

Stadium

Established in 1978, the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar, is the home ground of Odisha. The 12,000-capacity stadium has hosted several national and international tournaments including the Indian Super League, I-League, Super Cup, and 2019 Gold Cup. It was one of the venues to host the 2022 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup. The stadium also serves as the home base for the India women's national football team and youth national teams.

Support

Odisha FC had immediately grown its popularity post its inception which resulted in the formation of its supporters group, known as The Juggernauts. The name of the group is derived from i.e. the "world-lord", combining ("world") and ("lord"). Juggernaut is defined as a large powerful force or organization that cannot be stopped. After the club entered into a 3-year technical affiliation with the Premier League side Watford, the Juggernauts became the first Indian football supporters' group to get into an international alliance with supporters' group of a foreign club on September 3. They partnered with Watford's largest supporters' group, i.e. The 1881 Movement, for a cross-cultural fan exchange programme.

Squad

Records and statistics

+ Overall records Season League OWL AWCL Top Scorer Player Goals2022–23 1751128216Quarter-finalists Champions– Pyari Xaxa112023–24 112101131431 Champions–– Pyari Xaxa82024–25 1143381625127th–Group Stage Lynda Kom92025–26 24013161Group Stage–– Aswathi P.1

Personnel Current technical staff Position Name Head coach Mitchel Ivan Silva Assistant coach Vacant Goalkeeping coach Vacant Team Manager Cedric Williams Team Physio Vacant

Managerial history NameNationalityPeriodRef.Crispin Chettri2022–2025Mitchel Ivan Silva2026–

Football Sport Management Position Name Ref. Technical Assistant Joy Gabriel

Management Position NameRefs. Club Owner & Advisor Rohan Sharma Club President & CEO Ashish Shah General Manager Ravi Khedar Head of Finance Ajit Panda Senior Manager - Club Operations Bishes Panda Commercial Manager Ashis Hota Technical Assistant Joy Gabriel Senior Club Photographer Prateek Pattanayak

Honours Domestic Indian Women's League Winners (1): 2023–24

Regional Odisha Women's League Winners (1): 2022–23

Recognitions IWL Roll of Honours Best Media Operations (1): 2023–24

Performance in Asian competitions

Season Competition Round Club Result Position Top scorer(s) Goals2024–25AWCLPreliminary Stage Lion City Sailors4–1Group B Winners Jennifer Kankam Yeboah3 Etihad Club2–1Group Stage Urawa Red Diamonds0–17Group C Hồ Chí Minh City1–3 Taichung Blue Whale0–4

Affiliated clubs The following clubs are affiliated with Odisha FC: Watford FC (2021–present) Avai FC (2021–present)

See also Odisha FC Odisha women's football team Odisha football team Odisha Women's League Football Association of Odisha

References

External links