Shanghai Zobon F.C. (

Simplified Chinese Simplification, Simplify, or Simplified may refer to: Mathematics Simplification is the process of replacing a mathematical expression by an equivalent one, that is simpler (usually shorter), for example * Simplification of algebraic expressions ...

: 上海中邦足球俱乐部) is a defunct football club that predominantly competed in the

China League One The Chinese Football Association China League (), also known as China League One or Chinese Jia League (中甲联赛), is the second level of professional football in China. Above League One is the Chinese Super League. Prior to the formation of ...

division. Originally founded by Zhu Jun, the CEO of The9 Limited as an nondescript amateur club, it took over Shanghai Tianna to turn professional before the 2004 season, played their home games in the 16,000 seater

Yuanshen Sports Centre Stadium The Yuanshen Sports Centre Stadium () is a multi-purpose stadium in Shanghai. It is currently used mostly for association football matches. The stadium has a maximum seating capacity for 16,000 spectators. Apart from the stadium there is a 5,00 ...

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Chinese, Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four Direct-administered municipalities of China, direct-administered municipalities of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the ...

and won the

China League Two The Chinese Football Association Division Two League (Simplified Chinese: 中国足球协会乙级联赛), or China League Two, is the third tier league of the People's Republic of China. The league is under the auspices of the Chinese Football As ...

championship in the exact same year. In 2008 Wei Ping took ownership of the club until on January 28, 2011,

Guizhou Zhicheng F.C. Guizhou FC (; ) was a professional Chinese football club. The team was based in Guiyang, Guizhou and their home stadium was the 51,636 seater Guiyang Olympic Sports Center. Their majority shareholders were Hengfeng Real Estate, Guizhou Zhicheng ...

bought significant shares of the club for 5 million Yuan and thus began to merge the two clubs. The youth and reserve players were still allowed to play under the club's name in the third tier of Chinese football until they were sold-off to

Shanghai East Asia F.C. Shanghai Port FC (), previously named Shanghai SIPG, is a professional Association football, football club that participates in the Chinese Super League under licence from the Chinese Football Association (CFA). The team is based in Pudong, Shangh ...

on December 27, 2012 that eventually saw the club officially dissolved.

History

Formation

The club was founded near the turn of the century as Shanghai The 9 by Zhu Jun, the CEO of The9 Limited and finished 4th in the 2003 China Amateur Football League. The following season would see the club merge with professional Chinese Yi league club Shanghai Tianna, and the new club would breeze through the third tier without losing a single game while winning the play-offs of the

and gaining promotion to

at the end of the season. The club's first season in the second tier would see them finish ninth position within the league. Throughout the season the club's owner wanted to unify the team by renaming the team Shanghai United, however the team's lack of immediate success saw Zhu Jun abandon these plans so he could take over top tier Chinese side Shanghai Zobon instead.

Separation from Zhu Jun

In 2005, Zhu Jun and The9 Limited purchased Shanghai Zobon, a top tier

Chinese Super League The Chinese Football Association Super League, commonly known as Chinese Super League or CSL, currently known as the China Ping An Chinese Football Association Super League for sponsorship reasons, is the highest tier of professional football in ...

team and renamed the club Shanghai United instead and tried to merge the two clubs, however except for five players such as star midfielders

Qi Hong Qi Hong (; born June 3, 1976 in Shanghai) is a former Chinese international footballer who played as an attacking midfielder or shadow striker throughout his career. At Shanghai Shenhua he won the league and Chinese FA Cup with them before co ...

and Jiang Kun, the rest of the players at the old Shanghai The 9 could not join the new

Shanghai United Shanghai United F.C ( Simplified Chinese: 上海联城足球俱乐部) was a Chinese professional football club based in Shanghai, who last played in the 16,000 seater Yuanshen Sports Centre Stadium in the Chinese Super League. The club was foun ...

, due to transfer rules in Chinese football. The remainder of the old Shanghai The 9 was bought by the Euro-China Group (

: 中欧集团) who renamed the team as Shanghai Stars and would make sure that the club would remain within the second tier. In the club's desperate attempts to remain within the league they would hire a string of managers including former player

Shen Si Shen Si () (born 1 May 1973 in Shanghai) is a former Chinese international footballer who played as a left midfielder where he gained a reputation for his technical and free kick skills, which saw him become a runner-up in the 2004 Free Kick Ma ...

Peng Weiguo Peng Weiguo (; born October 3, 1971 in Guangzhou) is a Chinese football coach and a former international player. As a player he represented Guangzhou Apollo, Chongqing Longxin and Shenzhen Pingan while internationally he represented the Chi ...

and

Cao Xiandong Cao Xiandong (Chinese:曹限东 born 19 August 1968) is a Chinese football coach and a former international midfielder. In his career, he represented Beijing Guoan where he won two Chinese FA Cups along with Qingdao Etsong Hainiu and Beijing Kua ...

to keep them within the league until the start of the 2008 league season, the club moved

Wuxi Wuxi (, ) is a city in southern Jiangsu province, eastern China, by car to the northwest of downtown Shanghai, between Changzhou and Suzhou. In 2017 it had a population of 3,542,319, with 6,553,000 living in the entire prefecture-level city a ...

Jiangsu Province Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its c ...

, to the 30,000 seater Wuxi Sports Center, and the club was renamed as Wuxi Zobon. The club would also bring in experienced manager Ma Liangxing, however the move to a new city was not successful either on the field or off it and after only one year within Wuxi the club returned to

again in the 2009 league season. The club would bring in Shen Si again and was renamed as Shanghai Zobon as well as moving into the 16,000 seater Pudong Yuanshen Sports Centre.

Starting over again

On January 28, 2011

bought significant shares of the club for 5 million Yuan and thus began to merge the two clubs, while taking over the club's place in

. The former youth and reserve players were still allowed to play under the club's name in the third tier of Chinese football. This saw

Cheng Yaodong Cheng Yaodong (; born June 6, 1967 in Shanghai) is a Chinese football manager and a former international football player. As a player, he won the Chinese league and Cup with Shanghai Shenhua before ending his career with Shanghai COSCO Huili. ...

brought in to manage the team in the 2011 league campaign where he guided them to a fifth-place finish. He stayed on for another season until the management decided sell-off the remaining youth team players to

on December 27, 2012 that eventually marks the end of the club.

Name history

*–2005: Shanghai The 9 (上海九城) *2006–2007: Shanghai Stars (上海群英) *2008: Wuxi Zobon (无锡中邦) *2009–2012: Shanghai Zobon (上海中邦)

Honours

League * Chinese Yi League (Third Tier League) : 2004

Results

*As of the end of 2012 season All-time League Rankings * in North Group

References

External links

Official Website

Shanghai Zobon F.C.
at

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{{in lang, zh Defunct football clubs in China Football clubs in Shanghai Association football clubs disestablished in 2012 2012 disestablishments in China