Salgaocar FC have didn’t send the senior squad’s application for participation in the premier Goa Pro league for the first time in 67 years since the illustrious team was founded in 1956. Instead, the club has only sent in the paperwork for the U-13 and U-15 teams, closing the door on the U-18 and U-20 teams as well.
The closure of Salgaocar FC’s senior squad has devastated fans of Goan and Indian football. This historic club, known for its significant achievements, holds a special place in the hearts of its followers. Their groundbreaking victories, like winning the Federation Cup in 1988 and the Durand Cup in 1999, brought immense pride to Goan football.
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Legends such as Menino Figueiredo, Brahmanand Shankwalkar, and Bruno Coutinho, who once wore the club’s shirt, went on to represent their countries. The discontinuation of Salgaocar FC’s senior team activities marks the end of an era and leaves an irreplaceable void.
It not only affects the club itself but also represents a loss for the entire Goan community. The emotional attachment between the club and its loyal fans has been abruptly severed, leaving behind a deep sense of pain and sorrow. The memories of joyous victories and the remarkable talents nurtured by the club will forever be cherished.
V M Salgaocar, the leading businessman in Goa, made the decision to finance a football club in 1956. After establishing his company, Salgaocar made the leap into football by first taking on the Vasco Eleven team. The team then made its debut as Vimson, an acronym for V M Salgaocar & Sons, in the second division, which they won without a loss.
They had to wait another four years after being promoted to the first division the following year before they were crowned Goa’s champions in the summer of 1961. That was only the start. Salgaocar changed the colour of their jerseys as they torched the football fields with their brilliant game. They changed to green jerseys in 1977 from red and black.
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Salgaocar has a distinguished past that includes becoming the first Goan team to win the Durand Cup (1999), National Football League (1999), and Federation Cup (1988). And they did it with style, a possessive manner that was uniquely their own.
Salgaocar dominated the DCM Trophy in Delhi in October 1962 to the extent that old-timers still experience nostalgia when they talk about their mesmerizing performance. Salgaocar was the first Goan team to compete in a significant all-India competition, and when Goa was freed in 1961, Jawaharlal Nehru, the country’s then-prime minister, took notice.
Salgaocar regularly competed in the top-tier Indian leagues, the National Football League (NFL) and the I-League, both of which they won. However, in 2016, after the All India Football Federation presented a “Roadmap” that established the Indian Super League (ISL) as the top tier without any pathways for clubs below to ascend, Salgaocar decided not to participate.
It will be tough to accept the sad fact that Salgaocar FC will no longer be present on the pitch since it means an end to a proud tradition and a beloved emblem. The effects of this shutdown extend beyond football, acting as a moving reminder of the lasting legacy Salgaocar FC left behind.
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