Jamaican football club
Football club
Portmore United Football Club is a Jamaican professional football team in the top flight Jamaica Premier League. With 7 Jamaica Premier League titles, 5 domestic cups and 2 Caribbean Club Championships, Portmore United is the most decorated club in Jamaican Football.
The team plays its home matches at the Ferdie Nieta Park.
History
Hazard United
The club was formed as Hazard United and has been around for more than 20 years. They started out in the Clarendon League in Division 2, then played two years in Division 1 when they qualified for Craven A Premier League. They have been in Jamaica National Premier League ever since. Hazard United were based in May Pen and won two league titles (1993 and 2003).[1]
Move to Portmore and rebranding as Portmore United
Portmore United was founded in the late 20th century in Hazard as Hazard United. In the early 21st century, the club moved to Clarendon and renamed itself to honor its Clarendon home. JFF regulations stipulated that each club have stands with seating capacity of at least 1,500 persons, which Clarendon did not have. In order to honor this requirement, the team subsequently moved to St. Catherine and began to use the Ferdi Neita Sports Complex. Initially, Clarendon and the St. Catherine football club agreed to share the same stadium. However, in 2002, St. Catherine suggested Clarendon change its affiliation to become a St. Catherine team. However, due to an anaemic growth rate in support due to a club name which was not locally identifiable, Clarendon instead chose to move to Portmore and rebrand itself as Portmore United.[2] The club has won four (4) Premier League titles since it relocated to the Portmore community.
The club also has teams in youth divisions, including Under 20, Under 17, Under 15, and Under 13. A number of players from these teams have been capped with their respective Jamaica national teams.
In October 2008, Portmore were stunned as technical director Donovan Duckie quit the club for personal reasons. Duckie had only recently succeeded Horace Reid in August 2008 after Portmore won the league title.[3] The team’s current management staff includes Andre Waugh as technical director and joint head coaches Philip Williams, Rodolph Austin and Kevin Deerr.
Modern Era
Portmore United defeated Cavalier 2-0 in the inaugural 2023 Lynk Cup all-island knockout final to claim the first ever Lynk Cup trophy.[4] Adding to the team existing 4 JFF Champions Cup titles, Portmore United now has a record setting 5 all-island knockout titles.
Rivalries
Portmore Derby
A local derby has developed between Portmore United and Dunbeholden since the latter’s promotion to the premier league in the 2018-19 season. Both clubs are closely located in the city of Portmore, the matchup is coined the Portmore Derby.[5]
Current squad
- As of 17 November 2023[6][7]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
