Qatar Sports Club ( ar, نادي قطر الرياضي) is a

sports club A sports club or sporting club, sometimes an athletics club or sports society or sports association, is a group of people formed for the purpose of playing sports. Sports clubs range from organisations whose members play together, unpaid, and ...

based in

Doha Doha ( ar, الدوحة, ad-Dawḥa or ''ad-Dōḥa'') is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor, it is home to most of the c ...

Qatar Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it ...

. It is best known for its football team which competes in the

Qatar Stars League The Qatar Stars League ( ar, دوري نجوم قطر), or the QSL, also called QNB Stars League for sponsorship reasons, is the top level football league in Qatar football league system. Contested by 12 teams, it operates on a system of promotio ...

. The club was founded in 1961 as a merger of two Qatari football clubs Al-Oruba and Al-Nasour. They play their home games in the Qatar SC Stadium, which has a capacity of 15,000 It has recently diversified into sports other than football. An athletics group has been established, and this department competes in javelin throwing, long jumps, and sprinting. The club adopted its current name, ''Qatar SC'', in 1981.

History

Formation (1972)

In 1972, Al-Oruba merged with Al-Nasour to forma new football club named ''Al-Esteqlal''. Former player Saad Mohammed Saleh was selected as the first coach. Al Esteqlal was one of the strongest clubs since its establishment, winning its first official Q-League season in 1972–73. The next year, in 1974, Al Sadd hired head coach Hassan Othman from the club in addition to 14 of its players, including Hassan Mattar and Mubarak Anber, much to the dismay of club president Hamad bin Suhaim. During this period, transfers could be made unconditionally in Qatari football. Despite the resounding difficulties arising from the transfer fiasco, it continued with its success, winning the 1976–77 season and supplying the national team with some of its most prominent players.

1981–present: Qatar SC

Al Esteqlal was renamed Qatar SC in 1981. However, it gradually faded into obscurity for the next 2 decades, with the league being dominated by Al Arabi, Al Sadd, and

Al Rayyan Al Rayyan (; also spelled as ''Ar Rayyan'') is the third-largest municipality in the state of Qatar. Its primary settlement is the city of the same name, which occupies the entire eastern section and largely surrounds Metropolitan Doha and funct ...

. The club won the

Qatar Crown Prince Cup The Qatar Cup is a tournament in men's football. It is played by the top 4 teams of the Qatar Stars League after each season. In 2013, the tournament was renamed Qatar Cup. Previous winners Top-Performing Clubs References External link ...

in 2002 and also won the 2002–03 league season by three points. They won the Crown Prince Cup the same year, and again in 2009. The club was relegated to Qatari Second Division after the 2015-16 season, but were promoted back to the top division the next season.

Name history

* 1972: The club was founded by a merger of ''Al-Oruba'' and ''Al Nasour'', and was named ''Al Esteqlal'' * 1981: The club was renamed ''Qatar Sports Club''

Stadium

Qatar SC play their matches at

Suheim bin Hamad Stadium The Suheim bin Hamad Stadium (), also known as Qatar SC Stadium, is a multi-purpose stadium in Doha, Qatar. It is currently used mostly for football matches and home of the football team Qatar Sports Club. History The stadium was opened 1985 a ...

, which is located in Al Dafna. It is a multi-purpose stadium, featuring an athletics field, a gym, a shopping centre and a mosque, among other facilities. The stadium has a capacity of 15,000 seats. Besides local football matches, the stadium also hosts a number of tournaments such as

Qatar Athletic Super Grand Prix The Doha Diamond League is an annual one-day track and field meeting held at the Suheim bin Hamad Stadium The Suheim bin Hamad Stadium (), also known as Qatar SC Stadium, is a multi-purpose stadium in Doha, Qatar. It is currently used mostly for ...

and some of the

2011 AFC Asian Cup The 2011 AFC Asian Cup was the 15th edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The finals were held in Qatar from 7 to 29 January 2011. It was the fift ...

matches.

Players

''As of

:''

Out on loan

Achievements

* Champions (3): 1972–73, 1976–77, 2002–03 Qatari Second Division * Champions: 2016–17 Emir of Qatar Cup * Champions (2): 1973–74, 1975–76

* Champions (3): 2002, 2004,

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

Qatar Sheikh Jassem Cup * Champions (4): 1983, 1984, 1987, 1995 Qatari Stars Cup/QNB Cup * Champions: 2014

Recent seasons

Technical staff

Senior team

Youth team

Managerial history

Performance in AFC competitions

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

: 1 appearance :: 2003–04: Group Stage

References

External links

Basketball team
Official website
{{Qatari League Football clubs in Qatar Football clubs in Doha Association football clubs established in 1961 Multi-sport clubs in Qatar 1961 establishments in Qatar