The Pasargad Football Club is a Filipino football and

futsal Futsal is a football-based game played on a hard court smaller than a football pitch, and mainly indoors. It has similarities to five-a-side football and indoor football. Futsal is played between two teams of five players each, one of whom is t ...

club. The team played in the former United Football League which was the highest level of club football in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. It remains competing in the

Philippine Futsal League The Philippine Futsal League is the top-flight futsal league in the Philippines. The league hosts separate competitions for both men and women. It was founded in 2009 and is organized by the futsal committee of the Philippine Football Federation, ...

History

Foundation and early years

Pasargad F.C. started in 1996 when a group of football enthusiasts decided to form a team. Initially, the team consisted mostly of

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkm ...

ians, a few

Africans African or Africans may refer to: * Anything from or pertaining to the continent of Africa: ** People who are native to Africa, descendants of natives of Africa, or individuals who trace their ancestry to indigenous inhabitants of Africa *** Et ...

and some Filipinos that joined to play the game. The team eventually consisted of players from the national team and different collegiate teams with its core base of Iranian players. Pasargad was named after

the capital ''The Capital'' (also known as ''Capital Gazette'' as its online nameplate and informally), the Sunday edition is called ''The Sunday Capital'', is a daily newspaper published by Capital Gazette Communications in Annapolis, Maryland, to serv ...

of former Persian emperor

Cyrus the Great Cyrus II of Persia (; peo, 𐎤𐎢𐎽𐎢𐏁 ), commonly known as Cyrus the Great, was the founder of the Achaemenid Empire, the first Persian empire. Schmitt Achaemenid dynasty (i. The clan and dynasty) Under his rule, the empire embraced ...

(that has been named a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. I ...

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

). The club was originally part of inaugural

Filipino Premier League The Filipino Premier League was the top-level football league of the Philippines, operating under the country's football governing body, the Philippine Football Federation. The league was announced on August 2, 2008, and started on September 21, ...

in 2008. They finished fourth in the league table, however the league was discontinued after the first season. On 16 October 2010, they joined

2010 UFL Cup The 2010 United Football Cup was the second edition of the United Football Cup, a Philippine football tournament, that ran from October 16, 2010 to January 22, 2011. This edition consisted of 19 teams, which were separated into four groups with ...

where they finished third in group A and were eventually eliminated. They lost to Loyola in the plate finals (a ranking match for a spot in the UFL Division 1).

2013–present

The club made a good run in the

2013 PFF National Men's Club Championship Thirteen or 13 may refer to: * 13 (number), the natural number following 12 and preceding 14 * One of the years 13 BC, AD 13, 1913, 2013 Music * 13AD (band), an Indian classic and hard rock band Albums * ''13'' (Black Sabbath album), 2013 * ...

and reached the finals. They lost to Ceres in a 1–0 scoreline. In April 2013, Pasargad FC competed in the qualification round of

2013 AFC Futsal Club Championship The 2013 AFC Futsal Club Championship was the 4th AFC Futsal Club Championship.It was held in Nagoya, Japan between 27 Aug and 1 Sep, 2013. Bid process Japan beat bids from, Iran, and Uzbekistan. Draw The draw for the finals of the AFC Fut ...

as the

Philippine Football Federation The Philippine Football Federation (PFF) is the governing body of association football in the Philippines. Established as the Philippine Amateur Football Association (PAFA) in 1907, the PFF is one of the oldest national football associations in ...

representative in the tournament. In January 2014, Ayi Aryee Nii assumed as Pasargad's head coach, which was previously the job of club president

Esmaeil Sedigh Esmaeil Sedigh is an Iranian futsal coach and instructor based in the Philippines. He was a former football player in U21 1st division in Iran. He has held the position of futsal department director under the Philippine Football Federation. Sed ...

. In March 2014, Ayi Aryee Nii was replaced by Mike Agbayani. In 2016, Agbayani was replaced by former

Kaya F.C. Kaya may refer to: People *Kaya (given name) * Kaya (surname) Places *Kaya, Burkina Faso, a town in Burkina Faso, capital of the department * Kaya Airport, serving the town *Kaya Department, a department or commune of Sanmatenga Province in cent ...

assistant coach Joel Villarino.

Notable players

The following were notable players that played for Pasargad and have played for a national team. *

Misagh Bahadoran Misagh Medina Bahadoran ( fa, میثاق بهادران, Mithāq Bhāderan; born January 10, 1987) is a Filipino footballer who plays as a winger or forward for Maharlika Manila in the Philippines Football League and the Philippines natio ...

* Yannick Tuason * Ariel Zerrudo * Arash Ostovari

Records

;Key *Tms. = Number of teams *Pos. = Position in league *Prom = Promoted *TBD = To be determined *DNQ = Did not qualify Note: Performances of the club indicated here was after the UFL created (as a semi-pro league) in 2009.

International club futsal

Honors

Football

PFF National Men's Club Championship The Philippine Football Federation National Men's Club Championship was an annual football competition organized by the Philippine Football Federation and contested by Filipino clubs. It lasted for four seasons from 2011 to 2014–15. It was ...

::*''Runners-up (1):''

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment ...

:*Second Runners-up (1):

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing ...

Futsal

:*Champions (2): 2011, 2012

References

{{Filipino Premier League Football clubs in the Philippines Association football clubs established in 1996 1996 establishments in the Philippines Sports teams in Metro Manila Diaspora sports clubs Iranian association football clubs outside Iran