True Bangkok United Football Club () is a professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

club based in

Pathum Thani province Pathum Thani (, ) is one of the central provinces (''changwat'') of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are (from north clockwise): Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya, Saraburi, Nakhon Nayok, Chachoengsao, Bangkok, and Nonthaburi. The province is north of ...

, Thailand. Known as Bangkok University Football Club until 2009, the club was relegated from the

2010 Thai Premier League The 2010 Thai Premier League was the 14th season of the Thai Premier League since its establishment in 1996. A total of 16 teams competed in the league, with Muangthong United as the defending champions. League Expansion It was announced at the ...

only four years after winning their first league title in 2006. In 2012 they were promoted to

Thai League 1 The Thai League (, pronounced as ') or Thai League 1 (, pronounced as '), often referred to as T1, is the highest level of the Thai football league system. Contested by 16 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with Thai L ...

, after finishing third in the

2012 Thai Division 1 League 2012 Thai League Division 1 (known as Yamaha League 1 for sponsorship reasons) is the 15th season of the League since its establishment in 1997. It is the feeder league for the Thai Premier League. A total of 18 teams will compete in the league t ...

. The club has won 1

title, 1

Thai League 2 Thai League 2 (), commonly known as the T2, formally called Thai Division 1 League, is the second-tier professional league in the Thai football league system. Seasons typically run from August to May, with each team playing 34 games : two agai ...

title and 1

Thailand Champions Cup The Thailand Champions Cup (continuing Kor Royal Cup, a different competition from the Thai Super Cup) is a single-game competition between the winners of previous Thai League 1 and Thai FA Cup, organised by the Football Association of Thailand. ...

in their history.

History

Origins of the club: "Bangkok University": 1998–2008

The club was originally formed as Bangkok University in 1988 as a team for students at

Bangkok University Bangkok University (BU; ; ), commonly known as Mo Krung Thep (), has operated since 1962, is one of the oldest and largest private, non-profit universities in Thailand. Bangkok University began in the Kluay Nam Thai area of Bangkok. The unive ...

's Rangsit Campus in

, just north of

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estim ...

, the club have gone from provincial football, and winning university-level titles, to being a professionally run outfit in the top flight in the Thai Premier League.

An era of titles

Along the way to the Top flight, they won the

Thai Division 1 League Thai League 2 (), commonly known as the T2, formally called Thai Division 1 League, is the second-tier professional league in the Thai football league system. Seasons typically run from August to May, with each team playing 34 games : two agai ...

in 2003 and even captured the

2006 Thailand Premier League The 2006 Thai Premier League had 12 teams. No clubs would be relegated as the league would be expanded to 16 teams for the Thai Premier League 2007, 2007 season. Two teams promoted from the rival Provincial League, Pro League and two clubs from Tha ...

title against the odds, which has also enabled the club to taste life in the

AFC Champions League The AFC Champions League Elite (abbreviated as the ACL Elite) is an annual continental club association football, football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation, and contested by Asia's List of top-division football clubs i ...

. The club appeared in the

2007 AFC Champions League The 2007 AFC Champions League was the 26th edition of the top-level Asian club football tournament and the 5th edition under the current AFC Champions League title. Japanese side Urawa Red Diamonds became champions for the first time, beating Se ...

but played their home matches in the group stage away from the club's home. The first match on 7 March 2007 against Korea's

Chunnam Dragons The Jeonnam Dragons () are a South Korean professional football club based in the city of Gwangyang, South Jeolla Province that competes in the K League 2, the second tier of South Korean football. The Dragons play their home matches at the Gw ...

was played at the

Thai-Japanese Stadium The Thai-Japanese Stadium (Japanese language, Japanese: タイ・ジャパニーズ・スタジアム; ), also called Thai-Japanese Bangkok Youth Center (, is a multi-purpose stadium in Din Daeng, Bangkok, Thailand. It is currently used mostly ...

in Bangkok and the second, on 25 April against Indonesia's

Arema Malang Arema Football Club is an Indonesian professional association football, football club based in Malang Regency, Malang, East Java. The club competes in the Liga 1 (Indonesia), Liga 1, the top flight of Football in Indonesia, Indonesian Footba ...

, was played at the

Thai Army Sports Stadium The Royal Thai Army Stadium () is a multi-purpose stadium on Vibhavadi Rangsit Road in the Phaya Thai of north Bangkok, Thailand. It is currently used mostly for football matches. The stadium holds 20,000 and has a single stand with covered sea ...

in Bangkok, where tickets cost 50 baht. Both matches ended 0–0. The third, against Japan's

Kawasaki Frontale is a Japanese professional football club based in Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, south of Tokyo. The club currently compete in the J1 League, which is the top tier of football in the country. Their home stadium is Kawasaki Todoroki Stadium i ...

, was played at the Thai Army Sports Stadium. The team has failed to qualify for the next stage.

Slow down

Bangkok University always used the

Bangkok University Stadium Bangkok University (BU; ; ), commonly known as Mo Krung Thep (), has operated since 1962, is one of the oldest and largest private, non-profit universities in Thailand. Bangkok University began in the Kluaynamthai, Kluay Nam Thai area of Bangk ...

for domestic competitions until the end of the

2008 Thailand Premier League The 2008 Thai Premier League had 16 teams. It was the twelfth since its establishment. The first matches of the season were played on 18 February 2008, and the season ended on 11 October 2008. Three teams would be relegated to Thailand Division 1 L ...

season. The stadium was based on the Bangkok University's Rangsit Campus and had a capacity of 5,000, currently used by the club as a training ground.

Development of club's name: 2009–''present''

At the start of the 2009 season, the club changed their club name from Bangkok University to Bangkok United with a partnership with the

Bangkok Metropolitan Administration The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) is the local government of Bangkok, which includes the capital of Thailand. The government is composed of two branches: the executive (or the Governor of Bangkok) and the legislative (or Bangkok Metro ...

(BMA) to be in line with the

Football Association of Thailand The Football Association of Thailand, under the Patronage of His Majesty the King (), or FA Thailand (FAT) for short, is the governing body of association football, futsal and beach soccer in Thailand. It was founded on 25 April 1916. The associ ...

's (FAT) new regulations that all teams in the top flight must be registered as limited companies. They also changed their club nickname to 'Bangkok Angels', and were officially unveiled on 4 March 2009. Also, with this name change, the club relocated to a new stadium, the

which was based further center in Greater Bangkok. The stadium is for multi-use, such as athletics and football and holds a capacity of 10,320. The stadium was also shared by Thai Port whilst they waited for their stadium to be upgraded. On 31 May 2009, after 5 home matches, the club returned to using Bangkok University Stadium as a home ground again until the renovations of Thai-Japanese Stadium were finished before the start of 2009 season's second leg in August. Bangkok United narrowly escaped relegation in the

2009 Thai Premier League The Thai Premier League 2009 was the thirteenth season of the Premier League since its establishment in 1996. A total of 16 teams competed in the league, with PEA FC as the defending champions. Muang Thong United took the league championship wit ...

New owners

For the

season, Bangkok United was backed by Thai media company

True Corporation True Corporation Public Company Limited (stylized as true) is a communications conglomerate in Thailand. It is a joint venture between Charoen Pokphand Group and Telenor, formed by the merger between the original True Corporation and DTAC in t ...

. The early season optimism did not last long and the 2010 campaign ended in relegation. The Angels only won two home games all season. Rather surprisingly the two victories were against high-fliers

Buriram PEA Buriram United Football Club () is a Thai professional association football, football club based in Buriram. The club has played at the top level of Thai football for the majority of their existence and competes in the Thai League 1. The club wa ...

and

Chonburi Chonburi (, , IAST: , ) is the capital of Chonburi Province and, as part of the district Mueang Chonburi District, Mueang Chonburi, the List of municipalities in Thailand, seventh-largest city in Thailand. It is about 100 km southeast of Ba ...

. Incidentally, both victories were achieved at the

after they switched their home fixtures from the

to the university midway through the season.

Return to prominence

In the 2015 season, the club move to the

Thammasat Stadium Thammasat Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in the city of Rangsit, Thailand, Rangsit, Pathum Thani Province, Pathum Thani, Thailand. It is currently used mostly for football (soccer), football matches. The stadium holds 25,000. It is on Thammas ...

to pass the assignment of

stadium regulation. Brazilian head coach

Alexandré Pölking Alexandré "Mano" Pölking (born 12 March 1976) is a Brazilian football manager and former football player. He is currently the manager of V.League 1 club Công An Hà Nội. Playing career He started his career in his ancestral country of Germ ...

improved the club during the season before to finish fifth in the Thai Premier League. Since 2015, the club became one of big club in Thailand league. The team under Pölking has been widely praised for instilling an energetic, play with a galivanting style of attacking football reaching levels of intensity that are rarely seen in this league. Entering the 2016 season, Bangkok United ended in second place in the Thai League 1 and created history by claiming 75 points – the club's highest points in a single season. The team missed an opportunity to qualify for the

2016 AFC Champions League The 2016 AFC Champions League was the 35th edition of Asia's premier club football tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the 14th under the current AFC Champions League title. Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors defeated Al ...

by failing to beat Malaysian club

Johor Darul Ta'zim Johor, also spelled Johore,'' is a state of Malaysia in the south of the Malay Peninsula. It borders with Pahang, Malacca and Negeri Sembilan to the north. Johor has maritime borders with Singapore to the south and Indonesia to the east and w ...

in the qualifying play-offs match. In 2017, Bangkok United started winning 1–0 against

Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...

on the opening day in the league. Nevertheless, The team managed to end their season on a high note by finishing third in the Thai League 1 and reaching the 2017 Thai FA Cup final, losing 4–2 to Chiangrai United. Despite coming third, The club managed to be the league highest scorers with 97 goals from 34 games, making them the most productive team in the division by far and finishing just one short of breaking a record set by

Buriram United Buriram United Football Club () is a Thai professional football club based in Buriram. The club has played at the top level of Thai football for the majority of their existence and competes in the Thai League 1. The club was founded in 1970 as P ...

themselves in 2015. A big contributing factor to this was the goals from attacking duo

Dragan Bošković Dragan Bošković (born 27 December 1985) is a Montenegrin retired footballer who played as a striker. From 2013 until his retirement, he played for five different clubs in Thai League 1, earning more appearances in the league than any other Eu ...

and

Mario Gjurovski Mario Gjurovski (, ; born 11 December 1985) is a Macedonian football manager and former player who played as a midfielder. Playing career Club Gjurovski played in the youth team of Čukarički, before moving to Red Star Belgrade. He spent the ...

who netted 50 goals between them. In the 2018 season, Bangkok United ended in second place with 71 points. In the 2022–23 season, Bangkok United ended in second place with 62 points and also ended up as the runners-up in the

2022–23 Thai FA Cup The 2022–23 Thai FA Cup is the 29th season of a Thailand's knockout football competition. The tournament was sponsored by Chang, and known as the Chang FA Cup () for sponsorship purposes. The tournament is organized by the Football Association ...

Return to the AFC Champions League

In 2023, after a long 15 years absent, Bangkok United returns to the

group stage being drawn in Group F with

Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors FC () is a South Korean professional football club based in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province that competes in the K League 1, the top tier of South Korean football. Jeonbuk have won the K League a record nine times, including ...

Kitchee SC Kitchee Sports Club (; ; ) is a Hong Kong professional Association football, football club based in Kowloon. It was founded in 1931 and currently competes in the Hong Kong Premier League. The club has won 12 List of Hong Kong football champion ...

and

Lion City Sailors Lion City Sailors Football Club, commonly referred to as the Sailors or LCS, is a Singaporean professional association football, football club based in Bishan, Singapore, Bishan. It competes in the Singapore Premier League, the top tier of the Si ...

. On 20 September 2023, the club plays its first AFC Champions League match away from home coming back from 1–0 down to eventually winning the game to 1–2 with goals from club captain, Everton and Thitiphan Puangchan at the

Jalan Besar Stadium Jalan Besar Stadium, officially the Jalan Besar ActiveSG Stadium, is a football stadium located in Kallang, Singapore. The stadium is part of the Jalan Besar Sports and Recreation Centre, a community sports facility that includes the stadium as ...

. On 4 October 2023, Bangkok United secured a famous 3–2 home victory against Korean champions,

taking them to the top of the group with 6 points on matchday 2. Bangkok United went on to become group leaders with 4 wins, 1 draw and 1 lost, being 1 point ahead of Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors thus seeing the club qualifying to the round of 16. Bangkok United then faced off against

2022 J1 League The 2022 J1 League, also known as the for sponsorship reasons, was the 30th season of the J1 League, the top Japanese professional league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 1992. This was eighth season of J1 League as ren ...

champions, Yokohama F. Marinos where both team settled for a 2–2 draw in the first leg. While in the second leg, Bangkok United managed to hold on Yokohama F. Marinos until extra-time where they conceded a late penalty in the 120+2th minute. Bangkok United lost 3–2 on aggregate and was knocked out by the eventual runners-up of the tournament.

2023–24 AFC Champions League group stage - Group F

Bangkok United ended up the 2023–24 season in second place with 61 points where the club won the

2023–24 Thai FA Cup The 2023–24 Thai FA Cup is the 30th season of a Thailand's knockout football competition. The tournament was sponsored by Chang, and known as the Chang FA Cup () for sponsorship purposes. The tournament is organized by the Football Association ...

in a penalties shootout against Dragon Pathumwan Kanchanaburi. Bangkok United then qualified to the 2024–25 AFC Champions League Elite qualifying play-offs facing against Chinese club Shandong Taishan on 13 August 2024. However, Bangkok United failed to qualified to the

2024–25 AFC Champions League Elite The 2024–25 AFC Champions League Elite (ACL Elite) was the 43rd edition of Asia's premier club football tournament, organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the first since it was rebranded as the AFC Champions League Elite. The ...

after losing 4–3 on penalties shootout thus seeing the club entering the

2024–25 AFC Champions League Two The 2024–25 AFC Champions League Two was the 21st edition of the Asia's second-tier club football tournament, organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and first since it was rebranded as the AFC Champions League Two. This was the fi ...

being drawn in Group G alongside Singaporean club

Tampines Rovers Tampines Rovers Football Club (currently known as BG Tampines Rovers due to sponsorship reasons) is a professional association football, football club based in Tampines, Singapore, that competes in the Singapore Premier League, the top tier of t ...

, Hong Kong club Lee Man and Vietnamese club

Nam Định Nam Định () is the capital city of Nam Định province in the Red River Delta of the Northern Vietnam. History From August 18–20 of each year, there is a festival held in Nam Định called the Cố Trạch. This celebration honors Gener ...

. Bangkok United went on to top the group in the AFC Champions League Two with 13 points seeing the team advance to the round of 16.

Academy and youth

Bangkok United signed a collaboration agreement with

Surasakmontree School Surasakmontree School () is a Government School in Bangkok, Thailand. History On 25 July 1949, Field Marshal Phin Choonhavan, as Deputy Commander in Chief of the Royal Thai Army, collected money and funds to establish an Army school for children ...

and Bangkok Christian College. These agreements resulted in the introduction of young players from these schools joining the first team such as

Sasalak Haiprakhon Sasalak Haiprakhon (, born 8 January 1996) is a Thai professional footballer who plays as a left-back or a winger for Buriram United and the Thailand national team. Career On 23 June 2021, Sasalak joined Korean K League 1 side, Jeonbuk H ...

Sarayut Sompim Sarayut Sompim (, born 23 March 1997) is a Thai professional footballer who plays as a defender for Thai League 2 club Police Tero. Honours International ;Thailand U-19 * AFF U-19 Youth Championship ** Winners (1) : 2015 2015 ...

Jakkit Wachpirom Jakkrit Wachpirom ( Thai จักรกฤษณ์ เวชภิรมย์) or simply known as Ice (), is a Thai professional footballer who plays as a right-back for Thai League 1 club Sukhothai, he has also been used as a winger. In ...

Anusith Termmee Anusit Termmee (, born 19 January 1995) is a Thai professional association football, footballer who plays as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper for Samut Sakhon City F.C., Samut Sakhon City. Honours International ;Thailand U-23 * Se ...

Nattawut Suksum Nattawut Suksum (; born 6 November 1997) is a Thai professional association football, footballer who plays as a Forward (association football), forward or a Forward (association football)#Winger, winger for Thai League 1 club BG Pathum United F.C ...

Wisarut Imura Wisarut Imura (, born October 18, 1997), simply known as Tia (), is a Thai association football, footballer who plays as a Midfielder (association football)#Defensive midfielder, defensive midfielder for a Thai League 1 club Bangkok United F.C., ...

, and

Guntapon Keereeleang Guntapon Keereeleang (; born 22 January 2001) is a Thai professional association football, footballer who plays as a Forward (association football)#Striker, striker for Thai League 1 club Rayong F.C., Rayong. International career In 2024, he was ...

. Bangkok United operate Youth and Junior Youth teams as part of their academy to nurture local talent under a big project ''" cp-dreams."'' (Thai lit. ซีพี สานฝัน...ปันโอกาส). In 2019, 7 youth players of ''"cp-dreams."'' project from Bangkok Christian College were call-ups to Thailand U-12 and they helped Thailand U-12 to finish in third place in

U-12 Junior Soccer World Challenge The U-12 Junior Soccer World Challenge (U-12ジュニアサッカーワールドチャレンジ) is an international club association football, football tournament for under the age of 12 organized by Osaka Football Association. History The fir ...

football tournament. – beat Tokyo Verdy Junior, 2–0 beat

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly known as FC Barcelona and colloquially as Barça (), is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of ...

, 1-0 and beat JFA Training Center Osaka, 2–1.

Affiliated clubs

FC Tokyo , commonly known as , is a Japanese professional football club based in Chōfu, Tokyo. The club plays in the J1 League, the top tier of football in the country. From 2025, FC Tokyo is one of the few J.League clubs to be simply called ''Footb ...

(2017–present) :Bangkok United signed a partnership agreement with

J1 League The , the J.League or the for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Japan and the highest level of the Japanese football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation ...

, FC Tokyo in September 2017. There is the deal to work together at developing the academy players, strengthen the bond between two teams in order to improve the over all top team level and creating a new business.

Stadium

True BG Stadium is a football stadium in Thanyaburi,

Pathum Thani Pathum Thani (, ) is a town ('' thesaban mueang'') in central Thailand, directly north of Bangkok. It is the capital of the Pathum Thani province, Thailand as well as the Mueang Pathum Thani district. As of 2005, it has a population of 18,320, c ...

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

. The stadium is currently shared with BG Pathum United. Previously known for its iconic three-sided main stand, the newly constructed fourth stand expanded the stadium's capacity to 15,114 spectators. It is located close to

Stadium and locations

Continental record

Season by season record

*(1), (2). Brackets with numbers inside indicates the level of division within the

Thai football league system Cup eligibility Being members of a league at a particular level also affects the eligibility for Cup competitions. * Thai FA Cup: Levels 1 to 5 * Thai League Cup: Levels 1 to 3 * Thai League 3 Cup: Level 3 Current system Former system Befo ...

*N/A = No answer

Players

Current squad

Under-23s and Academy

;True Bangkok United U-23 Squad For PEA U23 Youngster League 2024 ^U21 ^U21 ^U21 ^U21 ^U21 ^U21 ^U21 ^U23 ^U23 ^U23 ^U21 ^U21 ^U21 ^U21 ^U21 ^U21 ^U21 ^U21 ^U21 ^U21 ^U21 ^U21 ^U21 ^U21 ^U21

Out on loan

Coaching staff

Managerial history

List of Bangkok United managers

Managerial history (2001–present)

Honours

Domestic competitions

League

** Winners (1) :

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

** Runners-up (4):

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

2022–23 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...

, 2023–24 *

** Winners (1) : 2002–03

Cups

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

**Winners (1): 2023–24 **Runners-up (2):

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

**Winners (1):

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

References

External links

* {{Thai football champions Association football clubs established in 1988 Football clubs in Thailand Thai League 1 clubs Thai FA Cup winners Sport in Pathum Thani province 1988 establishments in Thailand