Karachi United

The club was formed in 1996 by Taha Alizai, Imran Ali and Ali Ata in Clifton, Karachi. It started its youth academy in 2001. This was followed by the launch of the Karachi Football League and the Schools Championship in 2003 and 2005, respectively. Club initiated its youth summer camp in 2009, and the next year it launched community program, as well as the women division. Club acquired its own stadium in 2015.[6]

As of 2021, it has established 12 community centers in Karachi which cater to over 1,000 children,[7] including 200 girls. In these centers, the club provides free football coaching to kids from underprivileged communities, with educational and health assistance. It also employs full-time staff members which include community administrator, program manager, fundraising manager, brand manager, academy manager, social media manager, and about 150 coaches. Some of the coaches are from the local communities while others are former national team players.[8]

In 2013, Karachi United launched their professional team to compete in Pakistan's second football tier. They made their debut in the departmental phase of the 2013 PFF League. They ended first in the group and advanced to the final phase where they finished last.

In 2014, the club participated in the departmental phase of the 2014 PFF League. They finished bottom of group C, failing to win both of their matches.

In the 2020 PFF League, Karachi United finished at the top of group A and advanced to the final phase, where they finished second, and thus after a struggle of many years, were finally promoted to the Pakistan Premier League.[9][10]

Karachi United made its top-flight debut in the 2021 Pakistan Premier League.

In July 2004, Karachi United became the first team from Pakistan to visit one of the premier football clubs of the world when its 14-member under-15 youth academy team went on a week-long tour to the Manchester United Soccer Schools (MUSS) in Manchester,[13] a trip sponsored by ABN Amro. The team was coached by a Manchester United coach for a week, and also played three matches against local opposition. The players took part in seminars relating to diet and on other football-related subjects. The team visited the Manchester United first team training at their facility at Carrington, where it spent time in the company of manager Alex Ferguson, assistant manager Carlos Queiroz (former manager of Real Madrid), and players such as Roy Keane, Alan Smith, and Rio Ferdinand.[14]

In July 2006, two youth academy players Atif Sachak and Kareem Kerai, were selected for a pre-season two-week academy and community programmes at Premier League club's Charlton Athletic youth academy in a bid to enhance their football skills.[15] A few days later, both the players were drafted into Charlton's under-13 side for a match against a visiting American club.[15]

In September 2008, the youth team was invited to Qatar on a week-long tour to play matches against the youth teams of Al-Ahli and Al Sadd, as well as train at the prestigious Aspire Academy for Sports Excellence.[16] The tour was a successful one, with Karachi United winning 3-1 against Al-Ahli's U-17 team. They also drew 2-2 against Al Sadd.[17]

In September 2011, it was invited again to Qatar on a five-day tour to train and play matches versus Aspire Academy, Al Sadd and other local clubs.[18] The highlight of the tour was a 2-2 draw against Aspire Academy, which is considered one of the world’s top schools for sporting excellence.[19]

In February 2017, Karachi United became the first Pakistani club to tour Spanish giants FC Barcelona.[20] During their week long tour, the Karachi United squad, comprising 53 people (44 players and 9 officials), was given six coaching sessions by coaches from FCB, where they learnt about the FCB training philosophy and their values. The squad was housed at the Marcet Fundacion, a renowned Catalonian youth set-up through whose ranks came players such as Keylor Navas. During their stay, Karachi United’s four teams (two under-13 teams, with one of the teams comprising both boys and girls, and two under-16) played over 15 matches against local opposition. The squad also visited La Masia, the famed FC Barcelona Youth Academy and observed a number of the FCB youth boys and girls teams' matches. Having earlier also visited the FCB Museum and Camp Nou, they wrapped up their tour by watching FC Barcelona beat Leganes 2-1 in La Liga, courtesy of a late Lionel Messi penalty.[21]

KU's youth team was invited to play a four-match bilateral series against Aspire Academy in Doha in March 2019. The under-12 side managed to win all four matches in the series, grabbing a 4-2 win in the first game and winning the second and third fixtures 4-0. It won the fourth match 5-3 on penalty shootout after a goalless draw. The under-11 team won their first game 4-1, but lost their second and third fixtures 3-4 and 1-2. It won the fourth match 3-0, and was thus awarded the series victory, courtesy of aggregate results.[22][23][24]

In November 2019, KU was yet again invited by the Aspire Academy to participate in a tri-series football tournament. KU bagged the tri-series title in U-12 and U-11 categories by winning against Turkish club Fenerbahce SK and Aspire Academy, respectively.[8]

In March 2023, KU was once again invited by the Aspire Academy to Doha for a 5 day tour to participate in a 3-match friendly series between the U-11 and U-12 teams. KU won the series in the U-12 category by 2-1, and lost in the U-11 category by 1-2.[25] Karachi United also visited the Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium where they watched Al Sadd in the Emir Cup.