IFA Shield
Organising bodyIndian Football Association
Founded1893; 131 years ago (1893)
RegionIndia (primarily West Bengal)
Number of teamsVarious
Related competitionsWomen's IFA Shield
Current championsReal Kashmir (2nd title)
Most successful club(s)East Bengal FC (29 titles)
Television broadcastersKolkata TV
Websiteifawb.org
2024 IFA Shield

The IFA Shield is an annual football competition organized by the Indian Football Association, the football governing body in the Indian state of West Bengal.[1] The IFA came into existence in 1893,[2] and named after the association, the IFA Shield tournament was started in the same year. It is the third oldest football tournament in India, after Durand Cup and Trades Cup, and is among the oldest football competitions in the world.[3]

History

The royal houses of Patiala and Cooch Behar, A.A. Apcar of Armenian Club and J Sutherland of Dalhousie AC had financially contributed for the inception of the Shield. The coveted shield was designed by Walter Locke & Co. (Calcutta) and constructed by Messrs Elkington & Co. (London).[4]

Mohun Bagan, the first all-Indian side to lift the IFA Shield.

During the initial years of the competition, the IFA Shield was dominated by British Army teams and the Royal Irish Rifles defeated W.D.R.A. to lift the first IFA Shield in 1893. However, their stranglehold over the Shield was broken in 1911,[5] when Mohun Bagan became the first all-Indian side to win the IFA Shield by defeating East Yorkshire Regiment by 2–1.[6][7] That was a historic moment for Indian football as well the struggle for independence, as the natives beat the Englishmen in their own game. While the Royal Irish Rifles remains the most successful British Army side with 5 titles, East Bengal Club has won the IFA Shield a record 29 times.

The 1949 IFA Shield won by East Bengal, the most successful club in the tournament's history.

From 2015 to 2018, the IFA Shield was designed as an youth tournament wherein youth teams of all divisions were allowed to participate.[8] The decision was taken by IFA due to busy schedule of AIFF which includes Indian Super League, I-League, I-League 2nd Division, State leagues and Super Cup among others. In 2020, the tournament was once again organised as a senior event.[9]

Results

Pre-independence era (1893–1946)

Year Winner Score Runner-up Notes
1893 United Kingdom Royal Irish Rifles 1–0 United Kingdom W.D.R.A.
1894 United Kingdom Royal Irish Rifles 2–0 United Kingdom Rifle Brigade
1895 United Kingdom Royal Welch Fusiliers 1–0 United Kingdom King's Shropshire Light Infantry
1896 British Raj Calcutta 3–0 United Kingdom King's Shropshire Light Infantry
1897 British Raj Dalhousie 4–0 United Kingdom 31st Field Battalion
1898 United Kingdom Gloucestershire Regiment 1–0 United Kingdom 42nd Highlanders
1899 United Kingdom South Lancashire Regiment 2–0 British Raj Barrackpore Artillery
1900 British Raj Calcutta 0–0; 6–0 British Raj Dalhousie
1901 United Kingdom Royal Irish Rifles 4–0 United Kingdom Black Watch
1902 United Kingdom 93rd Highlanders 3–0 British Raj Dalhousie
1903 British Raj Calcutta 0–0; 1–1; 2–1 United Kingdom King's Own Scottish Borderers
1904 British Raj Calcutta 1–0 United Kingdom King's Own Royal Regiment
1905 British Raj Dalhousie 4–3 British Raj Calcutta
1906 British Raj Calcutta 1–0 United Kingdom Highland Light Infantry
1907 United Kingdom Highland Light Infantry 0–0; 1–0 British Raj Calcutta
1908 United Kingdom Gordon Highlanders 2–0 British Raj Calcutta Customs
1909 United Kingdom Gordon Highlanders 0–0; 3–0 British Raj Calcutta Customs
1910 United Kingdom Gordon Highlanders 0–0; 2–0 British Raj Calcutta
1911 British Raj Mohun Bagan 2–1 United Kingdom East Yorkshire Regiment 8
1912 United Kingdom Royal Irish Rifles 1–0 United Kingdom Black Watch
1913 United Kingdom Royal Irish Rifles 2–0 United Kingdom 91st Highlanders
1914 United Kingdom King's Own Royal Regiment 1–0 British Raj Calcutta
1915 British Raj Calcutta 0–0; 3–0 British Raj Calcutta Customs
1916 United Kingdom North Staffordshire Regiment 2–1 British Raj Calcutta
1917 United Kingdom 10th Battalion, Middlesex Regiment 2–0 United Kingdom Brecknockshire Battalion
1918 British Raj Training Reserve Battalion 1–0 British Raj Signal Service Depot
1919 United Kingdom 1st Battalion of Brecknockshire 3–1 British Raj Calcutta
1920 United Kingdom Black Watch 2–0 British Raj Kumartuli
1921 United Kingdom 3rd Battalion of Brecknockshire 3–1 British Raj Calcutta
1922 British Raj Calcutta 1–0 British Raj Dalhousie
1923 British Raj Calcutta 3–0 British Raj Mohun Bagan [10]
1924 British Raj Calcutta 5–1 United Kingdom 23rd Brigade of Royal Engineers Association
1925 United Kingdom 2nd Battalion of Royal Scots Fusiliers 5–1 United Kingdom Cheshire Regiment
1926 United Kingdom Sherwood Foresters 5–1 United Kingdom Cheshire Regiment
1927 United Kingdom Sherwood Foresters 2–0 British Raj Dalhousie
1928 United Kingdom Sherwood Foresters 2–0 British Raj Dalhousie
1929 United Kingdom 2nd Battalion Royal Ulster Rifles 2–0 British Raj Rangoon Customs
1930 United Kingdom Seaforth Highlanders 3–0 United Kingdom Royal Regiment
1931 United Kingdom Highland Light Infantry 1–1; 2–1 United Kingdom Durham Light Infantry
1932 United Kingdom 2nd Battalion Essex Regiment 2–1 United Kingdom Seaforth Highlanders
1933 United Kingdom Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry 2–1 United Kingdom King's Royal Rifles
1934 Tournament declared void (United Kingdom King's Royal Rifles and United Kingdom Durham Light Infantry: 2–2) 12
1935 United Kingdom East Yorkshire Regiment 1–0 United Kingdom Royal Regiment
1936 British Raj Mohammedan 0–0; 0–0; 2–1 British Raj Calcutta
1937 British Raj 6th Fire Brigade 4–1 British Raj Police
1938 United Kingdom East Yorkshire Regiment 1–1; 1–1; 2–0 British Raj Mohammedan
1939 British Raj Police 2–1 British Raj Calcutta Customs
1940 British Raj Aryan 4–1 British Raj Mohun Bagan
1941 British Raj Mohammedan 2–0 United Kingdom King's Own Scottish Borderers
1942 British Raj Mohammedan 1–0 British Raj East Bengal
1943 British Raj East Bengal 3–0 British Raj Police
1944 British Raj Eastern Bengal Railway 1–0 British Raj East Bengal
1945 British Raj East Bengal 1–0 British Raj Mohun Bagan
1946 Not held 1

Post-independence era (1948–present)

Year Winner Score Runner-up Notes
1947 Mohun Bagan 1–0 East Bengal
1948 Mohun Bagan 1–1; 2–1 Bhawanipore
1949 East Bengal 2–0 Mohun Bagan
1950 East Bengal 3–0 Services
1951 East Bengal 0–0; 2–0 Mohun Bagan
1952 Touranment declared void (Mohun Bagan and Rajasthan Club: 0–0; 2–2) 3
1953 Indian Culture League 0–0; 0–0; 1–1 East Bengal 11
1954 Mohun Bagan 1–0 Hyderabad Sporting
1955 Rajasthan Club 0–0; 1–0 Aryan
1956 Mohun Bagan 4–0 Aryan
1957 Mohammedan 3–0 Railways SC
1958 East Bengal 1–1; 1–0 Mohun Bagan
1959 Abandoned due to dispute over date of finals
1960 Mohun Bagan 1–0 Indian Navy
1961 East Bengal and Mohun Bagan (joint winners) – 0–0 2
1962 Mohun Bagan 3–1 Hyderabad XI
1963 Bengal Nagpur Railway 1–0 Mohammedan
1964 Tournament declared void (Mohun Bagan and East Bengal: 1–1) 7
1965 East Bengal 1–0 Mohun Bagan
1966 East Bengal 1–0 Bengal Nagpur Railway
1967 Tournament declared void (Mohun Bagan and East Bengal: 0–0)
1968 Abandoned due to court injunction
1969 Mohun Bagan 3–1 East Bengal
1970 East Bengal 1–0 Iran PAS Tehran
1971 Mohammedan 2–0 Tollygunge Agragami [11]
1972 East Bengal 0–0; 0–1 Mohun Bagan 5
1973 East Bengal 3–1 North Korea Pyongyang
1974 East Bengal 1–0 Mohun Bagan
1975 East Bengal 5–0 Mohun Bagan
1976 East Bengal and Mohun Bagan (joint winners) – 0–0 2
1977 Mohun Bagan 1–0 East Bengal
1978 Mohun Bagan and Soviet Union Ararat Yerevan (joint winners) – 2–2 2
1979 Mohun Bagan 1–0 East Bengal
1980 Tournament abandoned
1981 Mohun Bagan and East Bengal (joint winners) – 2–2 2
1982 Mohun Bagan 2–1 Mohammedan
1983 East Bengal and Aryan (joint winners) – 0–0 2
1984 East Bengal 1–0 Mohun Bagan
1985 Uruguay Peñarol 1–0 Soviet Union Shakhtar Donetsk
1986 East Bengal 0–0 (4–2 p) Mohun Bagan
1987 Mohun Bagan 1–0 Punjab Police
1988 Not held 1
1989 Mohun Bagan 1–0 Tata Football Academy
1990 East Bengal 1–0 Mohammedan 4
1991 East Bengal 3–1 Army XI
1992 Not held 1
1993 Uzbekistan Pakhtakor Tashkent 1–1 (5–4 p) Kazakhstan Irtysh Pavlodar
1994 East Bengal 2–1 Mohun Bagan
1995 East Bengal 1–1 (3–1 p) Bangladesh Mohammedan
1996 JCT 1–0 Iraq Al-Karkh [12]
1997 East Bengal 3–2 Kochin
1998 Mohun Bagan 2–1 East Bengal
1999 Mohun Bagan 1–0 Tollygunge Agragami
2000 East Bengal 1–1 (4–1 p) Mohun Bagan
2001 East Bengal 1–0 Brazil Palmeiras B 3 6
2002 East Bengal 0–0 (5–4 p) Churchill Brothers
2003 Mohun Bagan 0–0 (5–3 p) East Bengal
2004 Myanmar Finance and Revenue 1–1 (4–2 p) Mohun Bagan
2005 Germany Bayern Munich II 5–1 Eveready
2006 Mahindra United 1–0 Mohun Bagan
2007 Not held 1
2008 Mahindra United 3–1 South Africa Santos
2009 Churchill Brothers 2–0 Mohun Bagan
2010 Not held 1
2011 Churchill Brothers 2–1 Mohun Bagan
2012 East Bengal 4–2 Prayag United
2013 Prayag United 1–0 East Bengal
2014 Mohammedan 1–1 (4–3 p) Bangladesh Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi
2015 United U19 2–1 East Bengal U19 9
2016 Tata Football Academy 3–2 (a.e.t.) AIFF U19 9 [13]
2017 FC Pune City U19 3–0 Mohun Bagan U19 9
2018 East Bengal U19 1–1 (4–2 p) Mohun Bagan U19 9
2019 Not held 1
2020 Real Kashmir 2–1 George Telegraph [14]
2021 Real Kashmir 2–1 Sreenidi Deccan [15]
2022 Not held
2023 Not held
2024 TBD [16]

Notes:

1. ^ Tournament not held.
2. ^ Joint winners.
3. ^ Final abandoned.
4. ^ The final was abandoned at half-time after Mohammedan Sporting refused to continue, and the Shield was awarded to East Bengal.[17]
5. ^ The replay was abandoned due to torrential rain: after Mohun Bagan objected to a third match and refused to play again, the Shield was awarded to East Bengal.[18]
6. ^ The final was abandoned after 35 minutes as Palmeiras started a brawl on the pitch: the Shield was awarded to East Bengal, and the IFA also ordered that Palmeiras' results be deleted from the records.[19][20]
7. ^ Final abandoned.
8. ^ An all-Indian side won the Shield for the first time.
9. ^ Organised as an Under-19 tournament.
10. ^ Final abandoned.
11. ^ The Shield was awarded to Indian Culture League as East Bengal played with an unregistered player in the third match.[20]
12. ^ The final was abandoned due to dispute between the finalists over extra time.[21]

Performance by teams

Performance by Indian teams

Though the tournament was dominated by the British Army teams during its initial years, yet British Indian teams too participated representing India prior to the independence, but very few were an all-Indian side. Mohun Bagan was the first all-Indian side to win the tournament in 1911.

Top 10 Indian teams in IFA Shield

No. Team Championships
(Latest) 		Runner-ups
1 East Bengal 29 (2018) 11
2 Mohun Bagan 20 (2003)[22] 20
3 Calcutta 9 (1924) 8
4 Mohammedan 6 (2014) 4
5 Dalhousie 2 (1905) 5
6 Churchill Brothers 2 (2011) 1
United 2 (2015) 1
8 Mahindra United 2 (2008) 0
Real Kashmir 2 (2021) 0
9 Aryan 1 (1940) 2
Police 1 (1939) 2

Performance by Overseas teams

Awards

Since the 123rd edition of the tournament, the awards for the Best Coach of the tournament, the Best Player of the tournament, the highest goalscorer of the tournament and Fair Play has been renamed in honour of India's football icons- P. K. Banerjee, Chuni Goswami and Krishanu Dey,[23][24] and renowned sports photojournalist – Ronojoy 'Ronny' Roy.[25][26]

Krishanu Dey Memorial Award

As of December 2020

Year Player Goals Club
2020 Nigeria Abegunrin Adefemi Lukman 5 Real Kashmir
2021 Ghana Rahim Osumanu 5 Gokulam Kerala

P. K. Banerjee Memorial Award for the Best Coach

As of December 2020

Year Head Coach Club
2020 India Ranjan Bhattacharya George Telegraph

Chuni Goswami Memorial Award for the Best Player

As of December 2020

Year Player Club
2020 Scotland Mason Robertson Real Kashmir
2021 Scotland Mason Robertson Real Kashmir

Ronny Roy Fair Play Award

As of December 2021

Year Club
2020 India Real Kashmir FC
2021 India Indian Arrows

See also

References

  1. ^ Nag, Utathya (19 April 2023). "Calcutta Football League: East Bengal kings of Asia's oldest league competition — full winners list". olympics.com. The Olympics Football. Archived from the original on 5 May 2023. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  2. ^ Chaudhuri, Arunava. "List of Winners/Runners-Up of the IFA-Shield". indianfootball.de. Indian Football Network. Archived from the original on 7 October 2021. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
  3. ^ "FOOTBALL IN BENGAL". www.ifawb.com. The Indian Football Association (West Bengal). Archived from the original on 6 March 2016. Retrieved 14 January 2021.
  4. ^ "Nagendra Prasad Sarbadhikari — The first visionary of Indian football". Football Paradise. 25 November 2019. Archived from the original on 22 September 2022. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  5. ^ Sengupta, Somnath (29 July 2011). "Tactical Evolution Of Indian Football (Part One): Profiling Three Great 2—3—5 Teams". thehardtackle.com. Kolkata: The Hard Tackle. Archived from the original on 9 October 2021. Retrieved 16 March 2021.
  6. ^ Majumdar, Boria, Bandyopadhyay, Kausik (1 February 2006). Goalless: The Story of a Unique Footballing Nation. New Delhi: Penguin India. ISBN 9780670058747. Archived from the original on 8 April 2022.((cite book)): CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  7. ^ "Chronology of Important Sports Events — West Bengal". wbsportsandyouth.gov.in. Kolkata: Government of West Bengal – Department of youth services and sports. 2017. Archived from the original on 13 October 2022. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
  8. ^ "IFA Shield now U-19 tournament". Telegraph India. 10 January 2015. Archived from the original on 27 January 2016. Retrieved 16 February 2016.
  9. ^ "IFA Shield set for return as senior event". The Indian Express. 12 November 2020. Archived from the original on 27 September 2022. Retrieved 12 December 2020.
  10. ^ "Mohun Bagan Athletic Club: Umapati Kumar". mohunbagangorbo.com. Kolkata. Archived from the original on 28 April 2016. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
  11. ^ Chakrabarty, Kushal (12 July 2012). "Mohammedan Sporting Club, Kolkata: A New Horizon". kolkatafootball.com. Kolkata Football. Archived from the original on 9 July 2021. Retrieved 1 July 2021.
  12. ^ Chaudhuri, Arunava; Jönsson, Mikael; Bobrowsky, Josef (13 February 2014). "India 1996/97 – List of Champions: 102nd IFA Shield". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 18 October 2022.
  13. ^ "IFA Shield: Tata Football Academy wins the 120th IFA Shield". 7 March 2016. Archived from the original on 10 March 2016. Retrieved 14 March 2016.
  14. ^ "IFA Shield 2020 FULL MATCH Real Kashmir Make History, Beat George Telegraph In Final | The Fan Garage (TFG)". thefangarage.com. 19 December 2020. Archived from the original on 22 January 2021. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  15. ^ "Real Kashmir FC defends IFA Shield title, beats Sreenidi Deccan FC in a thriller". sportstar.thehindu.com. Sportstar. 15 December 2021. Archived from the original on 15 December 2021. Retrieved 15 December 2021.
  16. ^ "Kings offered to co-host IFA Shield". thedailystar.net. The Daily Star. 13 January 2023.
  17. ^ "It's Mohammedan Sporting vs Dhanmondi in IFA Shield final". The Times of India. 11 February 2014. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  18. ^ Banerjee, Ritabrata (26 March 2020). "Indian football: Instances when the Kolkata derby got abandoned". Goal.com. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  19. ^ "East Bengal declared IFA Shield winners". Rediff. 12 October 2001. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  20. ^ a b Sengupta, Somnath (8 March 2011). "The Glorious History Of IFA Shield". Thehardtackle.com. Archived from the original on 9 July 2021. Retrieved 16 February 2016.
  21. ^ "Soccer Sensation". NewspaperSG. Malaya Tribune. 11 August 1934. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
  22. ^ "Mohun Bagan Trophy room". themohunbaganac.com. Mohun Bagan Athletic Club. Archived from the original on 26 January 2022. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  23. ^ Mohamed, Farzan (3 December 2020). "IFA Shield 2020". www.sportskeeda.com. Archived from the original on 9 July 2022. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
  24. ^ ""Krishanu Dey Memorable Highest Scorar Trophy" for 123RD IFA Shield 2020 । পিকে-চুনীর পর এবার IFA শিল্ডে কৃশানু দে-র নামে পুরস্কার". zeenews.india.com. Archived from the original on 27 September 2022. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
  25. ^ "Shield's Fair Play trophy renamed in honour of Ronny Roy". aajkaal.in. Archived from the original on 6 December 2020. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
  26. ^ "123RD IFA SHIELD RESULTS 2020–21: Awards after the FINAL (VYBK)". kolkatafootball.com. Kolkata Football. 19 December 2020. Archived from the original on 21 November 2022. Retrieved 20 December 2020.

Bibliography

External links

IFA Shield
Football in India
Football in West Bengal
Categories