2022 Singapore Premier League

The 2022 Singapore Premier League (also known as the AIA Singapore Premier League due to sponsorship reasons) was the 5th season of the Singapore Premier League, the top-flight Singaporean professional league for association football clubs, since its rebranding in 2018.[1][2] The champions of the 2022 Singapore Premier League should have qualified for the AFC Champions League. The season began in March and ended on 15 October.

Singapore Premier League
Season2022
ChampionsAlbirex Niigata (S) (5th title)
AFC Champions LeagueLion City Sailors
AFC CupHougang United
Matches played112
Goals scored506 (4.52 per match)
Top goalscorerBoris Kopitović
(35 goals)
Biggest home winTanjong Pagar United 8–1 Young Lions
(1 October 2022)
Lion City Sailors 7–0 Tanjong Pagar United
(20 August 2022)
Biggest away winYoung Lions 1–10 Lion City Sailors
(13 August 2022)
Highest scoringHougang United 4–9 Lion City Sailors
(26 August 2022)
Longest winless runYoung Lions
(11 matches)
Longest losing runYoung Lions
(8 matches)
Average attendance832
← 2021
2023 →

Lion City Sailors were the defending champions, having won their third Singapore Premier League title in the previous season. Albirex Niigata (S) won their fifth title.

Format

The following key changes were made to the rules since the 2022 season:[3]

  1. Each team is able to register up to 25 players in their squad, a reduction of 3 players as compared from 2020.
  2. Albirex is allowed to have a minimum squad of eighteen (18) Players under non-amateur (Professional) contract, as at the pre-season minimum registration deadline and a maximum of twenty-five (25) Players.
  3. From 2021, Albirex is allowed to sign a maximum of 2 overage Singaporean players.[4] As in 2019 and 2020, Albirex must have two Singaporeans in their starting lineup for each game.
  4. Young Lions is allowed to register a minimum of twenty (20) Players as at the pre-season minimum registration deadline and a maximum of thirty-five (35) Players as at the close of the first registration window.
  5. Young Lions and Lion City Sailors Football Club to play their home games at Jalan Besar Stadium while Balestier Khalsa will play at Toa Payoh Stadium. Bishan Stadium is under renovation till end of season. Other stadiums used are: (1) Our Tampines Hub (Tampines Rovers and Geylang International), Hougang Stadium (Hougang United) and (3) Jurong East Stadium (Albirex Niigata and Tanjong Pagar United).
  6. Clubs will be equipped with Global Positioning Systems (GPS) devices - among other performance and tracking gear. Value of the sponsorship is worth around $620,000.[5]
  7. SPL clubs are now allowed to register a maximum of four foreign players with no age restrictions, of whom at least one shall be of the nationality of an AFC Member Association (Asian). A maximum of four foreign players may be named or fielded in any one match.[6]
  8. Players shall be allocated jersey numbers 1 to 50. Jersey number become available for allocation to new members after a player ceased to play for a club.[7]

New rules for 2022.[8]

  1. Clubs will be required to field only one U-23 player – instead of three – for the first half of a match from next season.
  2. There will be no limit on the number of U-23 players registered in each squad.
  3. All SPL teams will play each other four time.
  4. Clubs will be able to register 20 players per match. There will be nine substitutes allowed on a team's bench – up from seven – and clubs will be permitted to make up to five substitutions per match.
  5. Each team will need to field a minimum of one Under-23 player of Singaporean nationality for the entire duration of the first half. This is a reduction from three in 2020.
  6. Youth elite leagues are slated to resume.
  7. New scheme to incentivise SPL clubs to place higher priority on their youth development programmes.
  8. Clubs will receive monetary rewards for each of their U-23 players who gets called up to the national teams.
  9. 1st transfer window: 1 Jan 2021 to 20 March 2022, 2nd transfer window: 17 May 2021 to 13 June 2022

On 30 September 2022, it was announced by AFC that they had agreed to give its consent for Brunei DPMM's participation in the 2023 Singapore Premier League and Singapore Cup. This is subject to approval from FIFA.[9]

Teams

A total of 8 teams competed in the league. Albirex Niigata (S) from Japan is the only foreign team invited.

Stadiums and locations
Locations of the 2022 Singapore Premier League teams from Singapore
Team Stadium Capacity
Albirex Niigata (S) Jurong East Stadium 2,700
Balestier Khalsa Toa Payoh Stadium 3,800
Geylang International Our Tampines Hub 5,000
Hougang United Hougang Stadium 3,800
Lion City Sailors Jalan Besar Stadium 6,000
Tampines Rovers Our Tampines Hub 5,000
Tanjong Pagar United Jurong East Stadium 2,700
Young Lions Jalan Besar Stadium 6,000

Personnel and sponsors

Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

Team Head coach Captain Kit manufacturer Main shirt sponsor Other shirt sponsors
Albirex Niigata (S) Japan Kazuaki Yoshinaga Japan Jun Kobayashi
Japan Takahiro Koga (VC)
Fairoz Hasan (VC)		 Japan Mizuno Japan Denka[10] Lensmode
Kubota
Reeracoen
Kirin
EnglishCentral
Gain City
Dpro Logistics Namics
One Asia Lawyers
JPLUS+
Daiho Group
JTB
NSG
Sanpoutei Ramen
SMBC
ACCEA Singapore
PR Times
Nippon Medical Care
HIT Singapore
With You Global Creations
SD Aircon
At Twenty
Salonpas
Crown Line
SETA Technologies
Salonpas
Soken Medical
Dr. Stretch
Balestier Khalsa Netherlands Peter de Roo Japan Shuhei Hoshino (C)
Singapore Darren Teh (C)
Singapore Ho Wai Loon (C)
Germany Adidas United States Jeep Weston Corporation
Project Vaults
PSB Academy
TopGrid Pest
Dr. Stretch
StarBalm
Geylang International Singapore Mohd Noor Ali Singapore Zaiful Nizam
Singapore Abdil Qaiyyim Mutalib (VC)		 Thailand FBT Japan Epson[11] Aris Studio 23
Joydom Engineering
My Protein Singapore
Steel Industries
Springleaf Prata Place
Fightzone
TRUE Fitness
Dr. Stretch
Hougang United Singapore Clement Teo Singapore Fabian Kwok
Singapore Lionel Tan (VC)
Singapore Nazrul Nazari (VC)
Singapore Ridhuan Barudin (VC)		 Thailand Warrix Singapore The Physio Circle[12] SportCenter by Zup
Cafe Football (CF)
The Arena
SpeedFitness
Polar Water
StarBalm
Lion City Sailors Serbia Luka Lalic (Interim) Singapore Hariss Harun
Singapore Amirul Adli (VC)
Singapore Nur Adam Abdullah (VC)		 Germany Puma Singapore Sea[13] Shopee
Garena
Citrus by the pool
WLJK
Good bites
TAPS
Tampines Rovers Singapore Gavin Lee[14] Singapore Yasir Hanapi
Singapore Syazwan Buhari (VC)
Singapore Irwan Shah (VC)
Japan Kyoga Nakamura (VC)		 Japan Mizuno Japan ANA Courier Express [15] Rookbook
My Protein Singapore
Bauerfeind Sports
The Co-op
JSSL FC
Canadian 2 for 1 pizza
StarBalm
Tanjong Pagar United Singapore Hasrin Jailani Singapore Faritz Abdul Hameed
Singapore Daniel Bennett (VC)		 Thailand FBT Japan Tokyo Century Samtrade Academy
Hyundai
StarBalm
The Rehab Lab
Young Lions Singapore Nazri Nasir Singapore Jacob Mahler
Singapore Shah Shahiran (VC)		 United States Nike Catapult

Coaching changes
Team Outgoing Head Coach Manner of Departure Date of Vacancy Position in table Incoming Head Coach Date of appointment
Balestier Khalsa Croatia Marko Kraljević Contract Ended 10 October 2021[16][17] Pre-Season Singapore Akbar Nawas 22 October 2021[18]
Albirex Niigata (S) Japan Keiji Shigetomi Redesignated as Asst. Coach 26 October 2021[19] Pre-Season Japan Kazuaki Yoshinaga 26 October 2021[20]
Young Lions Singapore Philippe Aw End of caretaker role 31 December 2021 [21] Pre-Season Singapore Nazri Nasir 1 January 2022
Lion City Sailors South Korea Kim Do-hoon Left by Mutual Consent 11 August 2022 [22] 1st Serbia Luka Lalic (interim) 11 August 2022 [23]
Balestier Khalsa Singapore Akbar Nawas Mutual Termination
Joining Thailand Udon Thani		 18 August 2022 [24] 7th Netherlands Peter de Roo (interim) 27 August 2022 [25]
Hougang United Singapore Clement Teo Stepped Down 20 November 2022 End of Season [26] Singapore Firdaus Kassim (interim)

Note 1: Marko Kraljević was subsequently appointed as the Head, Youth for Hougang United.

Transfers
Further information: List of Singaporean football transfer 2022

Foreign players

Singapore Premier League clubs can sign a maximum of four foreign players in the 2021 season, up from three as compared to 2019.[27] However, one of them has to be 21 years old or younger on 1 January 2021 (Or at the age of registration).

Albirex Niigata can sign up unlimited number of Singaporean players for the new season. Only 2 local player above 23 years old is allowed.[28]

Players name in bold indicates the player was registered after the season start or during the mid-season transfer window.

Club Player 1 Player 2 Player 3 AFC Player SG U-23 Player
U-21 Player		 Former Players
Albirex Niigata (S) Singapore Hyrulnizam Juma'at[29] Singapore Fairoz Hassan[30] Singapore Zamani Zamri [31] Singapore Kai Yamamoto
Singapore Nicky Singh[32] Singapore Junki Yoshimura[33] Singapore Ilhan Fandi [34] Singapore Wong Jun Kai
Singapore Fikri Junaidi[35] Singapore Hilman Norhisam[36] Singapore Kenji Austin[37] Singapore Shakthi Vinayagavijayan
Balestier Khalsa Serbia Ensar Brunčević[38] Japan Shuhei Hoshino[39] Japan Ryoya Tanigushi[40] Japan Kuraba Kondo[41] United StatesScotland Conor MacKay
France Yann Weishaupt
England Max McCoy
England Hari McCoy
Geylang International Croatia Šime Žužul[42] France Vincent Bezecourt[43] Japan Takahiro Tezuka[44] Japan Rio Sakuma[45]
Hougang United Brazil André Moritz[46] Brazil Pedro Bortoluzo[47] Croatia Kristijan Krajček[48] Japan Kaishu Yamazaki[49]
Lion City Sailors Brazil Diego Lopes[50] Brazil Pedro Henrique[51] Belgium Maxime Lestienne[52][53] South Korea Kim Shin-wook[54][55]
Tampines Rovers Serbia Zehrudin Mehmedović[56] Montenegro Boris Kopitović[56] Japan Kyoga Nakamura[57] Japan Shuya Yamashita[58]
Tanjong Pagar United Croatia Mirko Šugić[59] Australia Blake Ricciuto Japan Reo Nishiguchi[60] Japan Shodai Nishikawa[61]

Note 1: From 2021, Albirex is allowed to sign a maximum of 2 Singaporean players above the age of 23.

Results

League table

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Albirex Niigata (S)[lower-alpha 1] (C) 28 17 8 3 88 43 +45 59
2 Lion City Sailors (Q) 28 18 3 7 91 39 +52 57 Qualification for AFC Champions League Group stage
3 Tampines Rovers (Q) 28 15 5 8 76 57 +19 50 Standby team for AFC Cup group stage
4 Geylang International 28 10 9 9 48 46 +2 39
5 Hougang United 28 10 9 9 65 71 −6 39 Qualification for AFC Cup group stage (Cup Winner)
6 Tanjong Pagar United 28 10 7 11 59 69 −10 37
7 Balestier Khalsa 28 7 3 18 45 78 −33 24
8 Young Lions[lower-alpha 1] 28 2 2 24 34 103 −69 8
Source: Singapore Premier League
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored; 4) number of wins
(C) Champions; (Q) Qualified for the phase indicated
Notes:
  1. The foreign club – Albirex Niigata (S) – as well as the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) under-21 team, Young Lions, are ineligible for any AFC competition spots.

Fixtures and results

Clubs play each other four times for 28 matches each.

Statistics

Awards

Monthly awards
Month Player of the Month Young Player of the Month Coach of the Month Goal of the Month Ref
Player Club Player Club Coach Club Player vs.
March Croatia Mirko Šugić Tanjong Pagar United Japan Kodai Tanaka Albirex Niigata (S) Singapore Hasrin Jailani Tanjong Pagar United Brazil André Moritz
vs. Geylang International (11/3/2022)
April Montenegro Boris Kopitović Tampines Rovers Singapore Ryhan Stewart Young Lions South Korea Kim Do-hoon Lion City Sailors Croatia Sime Zuzul
vs. Albirex Niigata (S) (5/4/2022)
May Belgium Maxime Lestienne Lion City Sailors Japan Kodai Tanaka Albirex Niigata (S) Japan Kazuaki Yoshinaga Albirex Niigata (S) Japan Reo Nishiguchi
vs. Albirex Niigata (S) (7/5/2022)
July Japan Kodai Tanaka Albirex Niigata (S) Singapore Ilhan Fandi Albirex Niigata (S) Singapore Noor Ali Geylang International Singapore Ilhan Fandi
vs. Balestier Khalsa (16/7/2022)
August Belgium Maxime Lestienne Lion City Sailors Singapore Ilhan Fandi Albirex Niigata (S) Serbia Luka Lalić Lion City Sailors Japan Kyoga Nakamura
vs. Geylang International (3/8/2022)

Singapore Premier League Awards night winners
Awards Winners Club Ref
Player of the Year Japan Kodai Tanaka Albirex Niigata (S)
Young Player of the Year Singapore Ilhan Fandi Albirex Niigata (S)
Coach of the Year Japan Kazuaki Yoshinaga Albirex Niigata (S)
Top Scorer Award Montenegro Boris Kopitović Tampines Rovers
Golden Glove Singapore Zaiful Nizam Geylang International [76]
Goal of the Year Singapore Ilhan Fandi
vs. Balestier Khalsa (16/7/2022)		 Albirex Niigata (S)
Fair Play Award Albirex Niigata (S)
Referee of the Year Ahmad Aqasha
AIA Team of the Year
Goalkeeper Singapore Zaiful Nizam
(Geylang International)
Defence Japan Masaya Idetsu
(Albirex Niigata (S))		 Brazil Pedro Henrique
(Lion City Sailors)		 Singapore Joshua Pereira
(Geylang International)
Midfield Japan Kyoga Nakamura
(Tampines Rovers)		 France Vincent Bezecourt
(Geylang International)		 Brazil Diego Lopes
(Lion City Sailors)		 Belgium Maxime Lestienne
(Lion City Sailors)
Attack Japan Kodai Tanaka
(Albirex Niigata (S))		 Singapore Ilhan Fandi
(Albirex Niigata (S))		 Montenegro Boris Kopitović
(Tampines Rovers)

References
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  2. Football: Goodbye S-League, welcome Singapore Premier League Straits Times, 21 March 2018
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  10. "New Main Partner is Denka Chemicals Holdings Asia Pacific Pte Ltd!".
  11. "'SPL had Covid protocols right'". The Straits Times. February 6, 2021.
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  42. "Welcome Zuzul to the Eagle's nest".
  43. "Vincent Bezecourt from Albania to Singapore".
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  45. "Welcome Rio to the Eagle's nest".
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  47. "The Cheetahs have signed striker Pedro Bortoluzo".
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