One of India’s oldest football club Mohammedan Sporting of Kolkata have decided to shut down after going bankrupt.
After a meeting between the club officials on Saturday, the decision to close down the Calcutta Football League team who were demoted earlier this year after they failed to meet AIFF’s club licensing criteria.
The club was founded in 1891 and it comes as another blow for Indian football after Punjab club JCT in 2011 and Maharashtra’s Mahindra United in 2010 were disbanded in recent times.
Mohammedan Sporting weren’t able to pay the salaries of their staff and players for the past three months having released their foreign players earlier after being unable to pay them as well.
They did the double in 2013 having won the Durand Cup as well as the IFA Shield in 2013 before going on to claim promotion for the I-league at the end of the season having finished 2nd in the I-league 2nd Division.
The club was founded in 1887 as the Jubilee Club under the rule of Nawbab Aminul Islam before it’s name was changed to Crescent Club and then again to Hamidia Club before finally becoming Mohamedan Sporting Club in 1891. They became the first Indian club to win 5 successive Calcutta Football League trophy as well as winning the first ever Durand Cup in 1941.
Mohammedan had played friendlies with ISL‘s Delhi Dynamos and Kerela Blasters at the end of September while it’s U-18 side won the Airtel U-18 Football Tournament title defeating Brothers Union 2-0 in the final at the Bangabandhu National Stadium at the beginnig of October.