Kitchee SC

Formation

In the late 1920s, a group of Hong Kongers formed a football team in order to compete in the Hong Kong Third Division. It was not until 1931, however, that the team was established as Kitchee Sports Club.^[1]

Kitchee was founded as a grassroots organization, as such, they lacked the funding to pay the administrative and facilities costs necessary to become a multi sports club. It was not until 1934 when the club were able to raise the money to rent an office at 130 Johnston Road in Wan Chai, that they were admitted as members of the Hong Kong Football Association.^[2]

World War II

In 1939, Japanese bombs accidentally hit Hong Kong during the Second Sino-Japanese War.^[3] The club's records during this time were destroyed during the bombing.

As the Pacific War began, Hong Kong fell to the Japanese on 25 December 1941, therefore the club's operations were suspended during the three year, eight month Japanese occupation of Hong Kong.

After the Japanese surrender of Hong Kong in August 1945, former members of Kitchee returned to the club. They resolved to help revitalize the Chinese Amateur Athletic Federation of Hong Kong and establish the Chinese Football Association of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Chinese Football Referees’ Association and the Hong Kong Chinese Footballer's Fraternity.^[4]

Post War to 1964

Following the war, Kitchee were admitted into the 1947–48 Hong Kong First Division League where they won the league title, the club's first major trophy. Between 1947 and 1964, the club won three Hong Kong First Division titles, one Second Division title, four Hong Kong Senior Shield's and one Hong Kong Junior Shield.

During this period, Kitchee discovered Hong Kong football legends Yiu Cheuk Yin and Lam Sheung Yee. Yiu led the club to its first two First Division titles and later became known as the "Treasure of Hong Kong Football."^[5] Lam spent a total 14 years at Kitchee, split between two spells, and was a part of every Kitchee squad which won a trophy between 1948 and 1964.^[6]

1965 to 2003

In 1965-66, Kitchee won only one game while drawing four others in the season, finishing second bottom of the table. The club were relegated after a 17-year spell in the top flight. In the subsequent season, Kitchee slid into the Third Division for the first time in three decades.

In the late 1980s, Law Ding Chun was hired as the new chairman of Kitchee. Law moved quickly to modernize the operations of Kitchee, buying insurance for all of his players in order to provide them with peace of mind in the event of an injury. His changes worked as Kitchee were soon promoted back to the Second Division.

In 1991–92, Kitchee won the Second Division title, returning to the top flight for the first time in 26 years. The squad during this period featured many future Hong Kong internationals including Yau Kin Wai, Chung Ho Yin, Yeung Hei Chi, Yeung Ching Kwong, Dale Tempest, as well as former England international Mark Barham. Kitchee spent three seasons in the top flight before they were relegated along with Kui Tan at the end of the 1994-95 season.

During the 1998-99 season, Kitchee won promotion back to the First Division as well as the Hong Kong Junior Shield. The following year, the squad were led by a backbone of young local players such as Lee Wai Lun, Man Pei Tak and Ng Wai Chiu. However, these were soon poached by bigger clubs and due to inadequate replacements, the performance of the team suffered and Kitchee were once again relegated at the conclusion of the 2000-01 season.

Ahead of the 2002-03 season, former Hong Kong national team manager Chan Hung Ping was hired as Kitchee's manager. He led the team to the Second Division title in his one and only season as manager.

A new golden age

Following its return to the First Division in 2003, Kitchee became one of the most prominent teams in Hong Kong, winning three trophies in two seasons under coach Dejan Antonic: two in (2005–2006) and one in 2006–07 season. The club secured 2nd place in the league, along with league champions South China who had already qualified for the AFC Cup as the Hong Kong Senior Shield winners. As a result, Kitchee became one of two Hong Kong representatives in the 2008 AFC Cup.

Since 2009, the club has been a partner of the Chinese University of Hong Kong in its Injury Prevention and Performance Enhancement (IPPE) program.^[7]

Kitchee were invited to take part in the 2010 Singapore Cup,^[8] becoming the first Hong Kong team to take part in the tournament. The club lost to Etoile FC 4:6 over two legs in the quarter final.

In the 2010-11 season, under coach Josep Gombau, Kitchee won its first league title in 47 years by one point over arch rival South China, allowing the club to compete in both the 2011 Barclays Asia Trophy, where they lost 0:4 to Chelsea and 0:3 to Blackburn Rovers, and in the 2012 AFC Cup.

Between 2011-14, Kitchee players combined to win the Footballer of the Year award for four straight years. The recipients of this award were Roberto Losada in 2011, Lo Kwan Yee in 2012, Huang Yang in 2013 and Fernando Recio in 2014.

In 2012, Kitchee Foundation submitted a successful proposal to The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust for a youth football training centre. The club received over HK$44 million from the trust for the establishment of a training ground at Shek Mun, Shatin, New Territories. The Jockey Club Kitchee Centre, as it was later called, opened in 2014. The trust provided 90% of the funding, with the rest coming in part from the proceeds of a Kitchee vs Arsenal exhibition match where they drew 2-2.^[9] Apart from serving as the training ground of Kitchee first team and Kitchee Academy, the Centre also provides facilities for the Education Bureau-approved Professional Footballer Preparatory Programme, which Kitchee jointly offers with Yan Chai Hospital Tung Chi Ying Memorial Secondary School, in order to integrate football training into regular school curriculum and schedule.

In October 2012, Arsenal donated HK$780,000 to Kitchee Foundation in support of the youth training centre.^[10]

The club won the 2013–14 First Division title. The following season, Kitchee won the inaugural Hong Kong Premier League, the 2014–15 HKFA Cup and the 2014–15 League Cup, completing the treble for the second time.

In 2016-17, Kitchee completed a treble for the third time, capturing the 2016-17 Senior Shield, the 2016–17 Hong Kong FA Cup and the 2016-17 Hong Kong Premier League title.^[11] The club promoted long time assistant coach Chu Chi Kwong to Head Coach and Director of Football. Brazilian attacking midfielder Fernando won the 2017 Footballer of the Year award while striker Sandro won the Golden Boot.

During the 2017 AFC Champions League qualifiers, Kitchee won against Vietnam's Hà Nội 3-2 but lost in the playoff rounds to Ulsan Hyundai in penalties.

Kitchee directly qualified 2018 AFC Champions League group stage through their HKPL title. The join of Diego Forlán in January 2018 also boost the awareness among Hong Kong. Despite being currently at the bottom of the table, they managed to achieve a 1-0 win over Kashiwa Reysol, making them the first ever team from Hong Kong to win a game in the history of the AFC Champions League group stage. Domestically, Kitchee won the 2017–18 Hong Kong Premier League, 2017–18 Hong Kong FA Cup and the 2017–18 Hong Kong Sapling Cup, completing a treble for the second consecutive season and the fourth in club history.

Out on loan

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

No. Position Player 15 FW Christian Annan (on loan at Hoi King) 27 GK Chan Ka Ho (on loan at Yuen Long) 29 FW Hirokane Harima (on loan at Hoi King) 35 MF Mark Swainston (on loan at Hoi King) 36 FW Robert Stamp (TBA)

No. Position Player 38 DF Kim Dong-jin (on loan at Hoi King) 67 FW Seb Buddle (on loan at Hoi King) TBA GK Paulo César (on loan at Hoi King) TBA DF Au Man Lok (on loan at Hoi King) TBA MF Ho Chun Ting (on loan at Hoi King)

Supporters

Kitchee's supporter group is known as "Ultras Bluewave". The group was formed in 2015, as is active at home and away matches in both the Hong Kong Premier League, and in continental competition.

League

• Hong Kong First Division/Premier League^{[nb 1]}

Champions (9): 1947–48, 1949–50, 1963–64, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2016–17, 2017–18

Runners-up (8): 1952–53, 1954–55, 1956–57, 2003–04, 2006–07, 2008–09, 2012–13, 2015–16

• Hong Kong Second Division^{[nb 1]}

Champions (3): 1950–51, 1991–92, 2002-03

• Hong Kong Third Division

Champions (1): 1997–98

• Women's League

Champions (1): 2017–2018

Cup Competitions

• Hong Kong Senior Shield

Champions (6):1949–50, 1953–54, 1959–60, 1963–64, 2005–06, 2016–17

Runners-up (6): 1948–49, 1951–52, 1955–56, 2007–08, 2009–10, 2014–15

• Hong Kong FA Cup

Champions (5): 2011–12, 2012–13, 2014–15, 2016–17, 2017–18

Runners-up (2): 2003–04, 2013–14

• Hong Kong League Cup

Champions (5): 2005–06, 2006–07, 2011–12, 2014–15, 2015–16

• Hong Kong Season Play-offs

Champions (2): 2012–13, 2015–16

• Hong Kong Sapling Cup

Champions (1): 2017–18

• Hong Kong Junior Shield

Champions (2): 1951–52, 1998–99

• Hong Kong Community Cup

Champions (2): 2017, 2018

• Hong Kong Community Shield

Champions (1): 2009

• The HKFC Soccer Sevens

Champions (1): 2011 Main Tournament

Club Senior Staff

Position	Name
President	Ken K. Ng
General Manager	Wilson Ng
Public Relations Manager	Ng Yee Yun
Director of Marketing	Lo Shuk Ting
Director of Football	Chu Chi Kwong
Competition Manager	Chiu Yun Shing
Customer Service Manager	Cheng Ching Yu

Club Coach Staff

Position	Name
Head coach	Chu Chi Kwong
Assistant Coach	Roberto Losada
Assistant Coach	Cristiano Cordeiro
Goalkeeping Coach	Roberto Sambade Carreira
Director of Youth Development	TBC
Head of Recovery & Regeneration	Pau MP
Head of Performance	Joan Casanova
Club Physiotherapist	Ngai Chi Wing, Gorman
Team Assistant	Lee Wing Po
Reserve Team Head Coach	Tim Bredbury
Reserve Team Assistant Coach	Yu Siu Chee， Gao Wen
U18 Team Coach	Chan Ka Ki
U17, U15, U14 Team Coach	Cristiano Cordeiro
U16, U11 Team Coach	Chu Chi Kwong
U13 Team Coach	Roberto Losada
Youth Coach	Yu Siu Chee
Club Doctor	Dr. Yung Shu Hang
Kitchee Academy Director	Roberto Losada
Kitchee Academy Coach	Gao Wen， Tim Bredbury， Chan Ka Ki
Professional Footballer Preparatory Programme Coach	Cristiano Cordeiro

Basic Information

Item	Name
Training Ground	Jockey Club Kitchee Centre
Official Mascot	Kit Jai (A Little Blue Bird)
Official Club Song	We Are Kitchee!
Unofficial Supporters Group	ULTRAS BLUEWAVE
Youth Football Training Academy	Kitchee Soccer Academy powered by DV7 Soccer Academy
Professional Footballer Preparatory Programme Partnership	Yan Chai Hospital Tung Chi Ying Memorial Secondary School
Home Stadium for Hong Kong Premier League and AFC Cup	Mong Kok Stadium
Home Stadium for AFC Champions League	Hong Kong Stadium

History of Head Coaches

Years	Name	Notes
2002–2003	Chan Hung Ping
2003–2005	Cheng Siu Chung, Lam Hing Lun	Co-coaching and both coaches have played in part of the matches as a player.
July 1, 2005–Dec 31, 2007	Dejan Antonić
2007–2008	Chu Chi Kwong	Caretaker
May 1, 2008 – March 30, 2009	Julio César Moreno
2009	Cheng Siu Chung	Caretaker
Aug 1, 2009 – April 30, 2013	Josep Gombau
July 1, 2013 – Nov 14, 2013	Àlex Gómez
Nov 15, 2013 – May 23, 2014	Chu Chi Kwong, Cheng Siu Chung	Caretaker
May 23, 2014 – 2015	José Francisco Molina
July 2015 – Mar 2016	Abraham Garcia
Mar 2016	Chu Chi Kwong	Caretaker
July 2016 – present	Chu Chi Kwong