Yangon United F.C.

Yangon United Football Club (Burmese: ရန်ကုန် ယူနိုက်တက် ဘောလုံးအသင်း [jàɰ̃ɡòʊɰ̃]) is a Burmese football club, based at Yangon United Sports Complex, in Yangon, Myanmar. Owned by Tay Za, a prominent Burmese businessman, the club was one of eight teams that participated in the inaugural edition of the Myanmar National League in 2009, where they finished as runners-up. The club have won a record of 5 league titles, 3 General Aung San Shield and 3 MFF Charity Cup.

Yangon United
ရန်ကုန်ယူနိုက်တက်
Full nameYangon United Football Club
Nickname(s)The Lions
Founded2007 (2007) as Air Bagan FC 2009 (2009) as Yangon United
GroundYangon United Sports Complex
Capacity3,500
OwnerTay Za[1]
PresidentPye Phyo Tayza[2]
Head coachGermany Gerd Zeise
LeagueMyanmar National League
20222022 Myanmar National League, 2nd of 10

Yangon United's biggest rivals are Yadanarbon with whom they contest the Myanmar rivalry. However, due to Yadanarbon's decline, Yangon United's main rivals are now Shan United, in which now they contest in the new Myanmar National League derby.

History

Air Bagan FC

On 18 July 2007, the chairman of Htoo Group Of Companies announced to establish a football club. So the company took over a first division club, Viva FC and changed the name to Air Bagan FC which competed in the 2007-2008 season. Air Bagan FC became champions of the first division in their first debut year in which the club sees themselves being promoted to the top division, Air Bagan FC competed in the 2008 Myanmar Premier League season and finished in the top half of the table.[3]

Yangon United

After the league was transformed to the nation's first professional football league, Air Bagan FC was renamed to Yangon United and represented the seven million population in Yangon. Yangon United also formed an alliance with Thailand club, BEC Tero Sasana.

On 16 May 2009, Yangon United defeated Zeya Shwe Myay 4–0 in the league's second ever match to open the MNL Cup 2009. The club finished in second place in group play with 16 points. Yangon United lost to Yadanarbon in the final on penalty shootout after a 2–2 draw. During the 2010 season, Yangon United built an artificial turf football pitch and gymnasium.

In 2010, Yangon United built their training ground and gymnasium. Yangon United Gymnasium is the first gym among the Myanmar National League clubs.

Myanmar National League three-peat and AFC Cup debut (2011 – 2013)

In 2011, Yangon United won their first ever Myanmar National League title and also became the champions of the 2011 Max Cement MFF Cup This is the first time a team has won both the Cup and the League title in the short history of the MNL. The following year In 2012, The Lions appointed Bulgarian coach, Ivan Kolev for the 2012 season in which he helped the club to won their second consecutive Myanmar National League title and qualified for the 2013 AFC Cup.[4]

In 2013, Yangon United signed with Grand Sport as their main kit supplier. Yangon United make their debut in the 2013 AFC Cup being placed Group F with Maldives league champions, New Radiant SC, Hong Kong club, Sunray Cave JC Sun Hei and Indonesian cup winners, Persibo Bojonegoro. The Lions put up a fiery display in the tournament winning five games and only losing once thus finishing the group stage as runner-ups with 3 goals difference away from group leaders, New Radiant which see them both through to the Round of 16 for the first time in the club history. Yangon United than travelled to India to face East Bengal on 15 May 2013 at their home ground, Salt Lake Stadium which unfortunately saw the club losing 5-1 thus exiting out from the tournament. However, on the bright side, Ivan Kolev guided the club to retained their league title in which they won their third consecutive Myanmar National League title.

Yangon United again qualified for the 2014 AFC Cup where they faced Vietnamese cup winners, Vissai Ninh Bình, Hong Kong league champions, South China and Malaysian club, Kelantan. The club performed magnificently in the tournament as they went on to finished as group runner-ups winning 3 times and losing 3 games in which the club qualified for the Round of 16 tie against Indonesian club, Persipura Jayapura in which they suffered their heaviest defeat in their history losing 9-2 at the Mandala Stadium.

The 2014 season saw the club finishing 2nd in the league, 4 points behind champions, Yadanarbon which saw their three consecutive league title streaks come to an end. However, the club managed to get hold of the league title in the 2015 season winning their fourth league title in the club history and also seeing them qualified to the 2016 AFC Champions League qualifying play-off where they faced Thailand club, Chonburi losing 3-2 in extra time sending Chonburi to the next round to face J1 League club, FC Tokyo.

In 2018, Yangon United won their fifth league title finishing as champions with 1 point ahead of league rivals,Shan United. The club winning the league as champions saw them qualified for the 2019 AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs facing against Philippines club, Ceres–Negros which The Lions won the match 2-1 progressing on to the next stage to face Thailand club, Chiangrai United losing 3-1 in the process thus exiting from the qualifying play-off and being dropped to the 2019 AFC Cup.

They would go on and dominate for long periods, until 2019, when they gave up the trophy to Shan United. They followed that up with an unconvincing 2020 Myanmar National League finishing 4th.

In the 2022 Myanmar National League season, they finished second place behind Shan United. Their top scorer was Valci Júnior who scored 8 goals in that season.

Stadium
Thuwunna Stadium have been the home ground of Yangon United since 2009

Yangon United have been using the Thuwunna Stadium ever since their establishment as a professional football club in 2009. Thuwunna Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium located in Yangon, Myanmar which it was constructed with the help from the Japanese government. When the stadium was completed in 1985 it had a capacity of up to 50,000 people. In 2013, the stadium underwent a major renovation and was expanded to host 2013 Southeast Asian Games football matches. Yangon United than moved out to their new build home ground, the Yangon United Sports Complex which is an artificial turf where it was much easier to maintain and low cost rents. The new stadium is 18 minutes drive away from their old Stadium but however, the club would often use their Thuwunna Stadium for AFC Cup games to match the AFC stadium requirements.

Home Ground

Players

2023 Final squad
As of 22 June 2023[5]

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

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Myanmar MYA Han Naing Soe
2 DF Myanmar MYA Hein Zeyar Lin
3 DF Myanmar MYA Zaw Ye Tun
4 DF Myanmar MYA David Htan
5 DF Myanmar MYA Kyaw Phyo Wai
6 MF Myanmar MYA Yan Kyaw Soe
7 MF Myanmar MYA Zaw Win Thein
9 FW Myanmar MYA La Min Htwe
13 GK Myanmar MYA Thura Kyaw
14 MF Myanmar MYA Yan Lin Aung
15 FW Guinea GUI Sekou Sylla
17 DF Myanmar MYA Zarni Htet
18 GK Myanmar MYA Phone Thit Sar Min
19 DF Myanmar MYA Zin Ko Htet
20 FW Colombia COL José Adolfo Valencia
21 FW Myanmar MYA Oakkar Naing
No. Pos. Nation Player
22 DF Myanmar MYA Min Kyaw Khant
23 FW Myanmar MYA Yan Kyaw Htwe
24 MF Myanmar MYA Kaung Htet Soe
26 DF Myanmar MYA Thu Rein Soe
27 DF Ghana GHA Marlle Habila
28 MF Myanmar MYA Thar Yar Win Htet
30 MF Myanmar MYA Ye Lin Htet
31 MF Myanmar MYA Htet Lin Soe
46 DF Myanmar MYA Nyan Lin Htet
47 DF Myanmar MYA Wai Yan Soe
70 MF Myanmar MYA Yan Naing Oo (captain)
75 GK Myanmar MYA San Set Naing
77 MF Myanmar MYA Sa Aung Pyae Ko
96 MF Myanmar MYA Hlaing Bo Bo

Individual records

Lists of the players with the most caps and top goalscorers for the club in the league games (players in bold signifies current Yangon United F.C. player).


As of 15 October 2023
Top Seven Highest Goalscorers in the league games
Player Period Goals Ratio Caps
1 Brazil Cézar 2012–2015, 2017 118 1.06 111
2 Myanmar Kyaw Ko Ko 2013–2019 58 0.42 139
3 Guinea Sylla Sekou 2018–2019, 2023– 57 0.85 67
4 Nigeria Charles Obi 2010–2011 31 1.11 28
5 Brazil Emerson 2014–2015, 2017, 2021 31 0.46 68
6 Myanmar Maung Maung Lwin 2017–2021 27 0.38 72
7 Nigeria Emmanuel Uzochukwu 2017–2018, 2020–2021 20 0.61 33
As of 15 October 2023
Top Twelve Players With Most Appearances in the league games
Player Period Caps Goals
1 Myanmar David Htan 2009–2018, 2022– 285 8
2 Myanmar Yan Aung Kyaw 2009–2020 246 3
3 Myanmar Kyi Lin 2009–2019, 2020 178 15
4 Myanmar Khin Maung Lwin 2009–2015 154 5
5 Myanmar Kyaw Ko Ko 2013–2019 139 58
6 Myanmar Zaw Min Tun 2015–2017, 2018 133 7
7 Myanmar Myo Min Tun 2009–2013 121 0
8 Brazil Cézar 2012–2015, 2017 111 118
9 Myanmar Aung Aung Oo 2009–2013 110 0
10 Myanmar Kyaw Zin Htet 2017–2020 87 0
11 Myanmar San Set Naing 2017– 84 0
12 Ivory Coast Kekere Moukailou 2017–2019 75 6

Continental record

All results (home and away) list Yangon United's goal tally first.

Season Competition Round Club Home Away Aggregate
2012 AFC Cup Group G Thailand Chonburi 1–1 0–1 4th
Hong Kong Citizen AA 1–2 1–2
Singapore Home United 0–0 1–3
2013 AFC Cup Group F Maldives New Radiant 2–0 1–3 2nd
Hong Kong Sun Hei 2–0 3–1
Indonesia Persibo Bojonegoro 3–0 7–1
Round of 16 India East Bengal 1–5
2014 AFC Cup Group G Vietnam Vissai Ninh Bình 1–4 2–3 2nd
Hong Kong South China 2–0 3–5
Malaysia Kelantan 5–3 3–2
Round of 16 Indonesia Persipura Jayapura 2–9
2015 Mekong Club Championship First round Laos Lao Toyota 5–2 2nd
Cambodia Boeung Ket Angkor 0–3
2016 AFC Champions League Preliminary round 2 Thailand Chonburi 2–3 (a.e.t.)
AFC Cup Group G Hong Kong South China 2–1 1–2 3rd
Maldives Maziya 3–2 1–1
India Mohun Bagan 1–1 2–3
2018 AFC Cup Group G Indonesia Bali United 3–2 3–1 1st
Vietnam FLC Thanh Hóa 2–1 3–3
Philippines Global Cebu 3–0 1–2
Zonal semi-finals Philippines Ceres–Negros 3–2 2–4 5–6
2019 AFC Champions League Preliminary round 1 Philippines Ceres–Negros 2–1
Preliminary round 2 Thailand Chiangrai United 1–3
AFC Cup Group F Singapore Tampines Rovers 1–3 3–4 3rd
Cambodia Nagaworld 2–0 1–2
Vietnam Hà Nội 2–5 1–0
2020 AFC Cup Play-off round Brunei Indera 3–1 6–1 9–2
Group F Vietnam Hồ Chí Minh City 2–2 2nd
Laos Lao Toyota 3–2
Singapore Hougang United 1–0
2023–24 AFC Cup Preliminary round 2 Brunei DPMM 2–1
Play-off round Indonesia PSM Makassar 0–4

Honours

League

Cup

Coaching staff
As of 8 August 2023[6]
Position Staff
Head coach Germany Gerd Zeise
Assistant coach Myanmar Myo Hlaing Oo
Myanmar Kyaw Soe Oo
Myanmar Khin Maung Lwin
Goalkeeping coach Myanmar Aung Ye Thway
Team Officer Myanmar Yan Aung Kyaw

Statistics

Domestic
Season League Cup Top goalscorer Manager
Div. Pos. Pl. W D L GS GA P Name Goals
2009–10 1st 4 14 7 2 5 24 16 23
2010 1st 3 20 11 6 3 44 12 39
2011 1st 1 22 17 3 2 50 15 54 Winners
2012 1st 1 26 18 5 3 64 25 60 Semi-finals Brazil Cézar 15 Bulgaria Ivan Kolev
2013 1st 1 22 15 4 3 42 20 49 Cancelled Brazil Cézar 20
2014 1st 2 22 14 4 3 60 22 46 Quarter-finals Brazil Cézar 26 Australia Eric Williams
2015 1st 1 22 17 3 2 62 28 54 2nd round Brazil Cézar 28 Myanmar Tin Maung Tun
2016 1st 2 22 12 4 6 43 25 40 Runners-up Myanmar Kyaw Ko Ko 13 Myanmar Myo Min Tun
2017 1st 2 22 16 4 2 45 11 52 Runners-up Myanmar Kyaw Ko Ko 9 Myanmar Myo Min Tun
2018 1st 1 22 16 3 3 54 20 51 Winners Guinea Sylla Sekou 28 Myanmar Myo Min Tun Maung
2019 1st 3 22 12 7 3 40 15 43 Winners Guinea Sylla Sekou 10 Myanmar Tin Maung Tun
2020 1st 4 20 11 4 3 39 18 37 Nigeria Emmanuel Uzochukwu & Ghana Ernest Barfo 8 Myanmar Min Tun Lin
2022 1st 2 18 12 3 3 37 8 39 Brazil Valci Júnior 8 Myanmar Min Tun Lin

References
  1. Han Oo Khin (March 9–15, 2009). "New era for football". The Myanmar Times. Archived from the original on February 15, 2012.
  2. "Yokohama F. Marinos sign pact with Myanmar's Yangon United". goal.com. 2013-10-15. Archived from the original on 2015-08-27. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  3. Thomas Kean (May 25–31, 2009). "Footballers from abroad at home in Myanmar". The Myanmar Times. Archived from the original on 2012-03-13. Retrieved 2009-05-30.
  4. Amoy Ghoshal (2013-05-03). "AFC Cup rivals' watch – Yangon United". Sportskeeda. Archived from the original on 2018-09-13. Retrieved December 9, 2017.
  5. "Players". Archived from the original on June 15, 2018. Retrieved September 27, 2017.
  6. "Coaching Staff". Archived from the original on 2018-12-15. Retrieved 2017-07-19. in Burmese
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