Minerva Academy FC
Minerva Academy Football Club is an Indian professional football club based in Mohali/Chandigarh, Punjab. It is part of the multi-sports club which also has cricket and futsal teams. The club's football section predominantly competed in the Punjab State Super League.
Minerva previously participated in the I-League, then the highest division of the Indian football league system. After selling Punjab FC to Roundglass Sports, owner Ranjit Bajaj bought stakes in Delhi FC. However, Minerva Academy remained active since its inception.
After being promoted into the I-League in 2016, the academy based club was rebranded as Minerva Punjab FC, and in 2019 the football section was relabeled as Punjab FC. The club has won the I-League title once, in 2017–18. Widely known as "the factory" of Indian football, Minerva is one of the most successful sports academies in the country.
History and overview
2005–2020
The club was established in 2005 as Minerva Academy. It was founded as a purpose of reviving the glory of the Minerva Club, a football team of Minerva Public School in Mohali, that emerged as one of the most formidable in the state of Punjab. Until 2013, it was operated as an amateur six-a-side team for local players, alongside appearing in age-grouped tournaments.Minerva initially fielded players in various regional competitions in Punjab and beyond, while club's first major tournament at the national level was the I-League 2nd Division in 2015–16. On 22 November 2015, the club began league journey with a 2–0 win against Kenkre. Goalkeeper Arshdeep Singh maintained cleen-sheets as Minerva thrashed PIFA 3–0 on 11 December. They reached final round of the tournament and maintained good form, but ended campaign earning second place after a 3–1 defeat to Dempo. They were promoted to the I-League after an impressive stint at the 2nd Division. Minerva later took part in 2016 Durand Cup, getting the direct entry. They earned only point from a 2–2 tie with Army Green in the last group stage fixture, hence couldn't qualify for the semi-finals. Minerva along with Chennai City was promoted to the I-League, after the withdrawal of Dempo. The club ended its 2016–17 I-League season at the second last position. In December 2016, Minerva roped in Colm Joseph Toal as technical director. In October 2017, Bollywood actor Rannvijay Singha was unveiled as co-owner of the club.
Next season, surprising everyone, Minerva clinched the I-League title. It was their first ever top division title. They became the first club from North India to win the league since 1996. The title made the team qualify for their first-ever continental tournament. Minerva appeared in the group stage of the 2019 AFC Cup, alongside Chennaiyin, starting from the preliminary round 2. However, they lost to Iranian club Saipa in the qualifying play-offs of the 2019 AFC Champions League. On 3 April 2019, Minerva kicked-off their group stage campaign against Chennaiyin, which ended in a 0–0 stalemate. On 17 April, the club held Abahani Limited Dhaka of Bangladesh by 2–2 at Bangabandhu National Stadium. They maintained undefeated form, drew both home and away games with Nepali side Manang Marshyangdi. They drew another game with Chennaiyin, this time 1–1 in Guwahati. In the last group stage fixture, the club lost 0–1 to Abahani. Minerva was also placed in the round of 16 of the 2018 Indian Super Cup, in which they lost to Jamshedpur by 4–5.
File:DPMM-Kasuka 4 December 2022 12.jpg|thumb|200px|Paul Munster guided Minerva in 2018–19 season as both technical director and head coach.
In July 2018, Minerva roped in noted Indian manager Sukhwinder Singh as technical director. On 8 August 2018, Northern Irish manager Paul Munster was appointed by the club. The club won the Punjab State Super League for the first time after becoming undefeated in 11 games, and later went on to win the J&K Invitational Cup, jointly with Real Kashmir. In February 2019, Minerva signed a strategic partnership with Bundesliga club Borussia Mönchengladbach, aiming football development at grassroots level. On 8 February 2019, Minerva announced Munster's departure. In the 2018–19 I-League, the club managed to win four of their twenty fixtures and finished ninth in the league table. They were placed in the 2019 Indian Super Cup qualifying round, but refused to play protesting against uncertainty of the I-League clubs' future in Indian football. Thereafter, they were also not invited to play the 2019 Durand Cup. On 30 October 2019, announcement was made that after a partnership agreement with RoundGlass Sports Private Ltd., the club has been renamed as Punjab Football Club. From mid-2019 until May 2020, the club was coached by Yan Law. After losing the I-League spot, Minerva started playing football again in Punjab football league system with its youth age groups. It is the only Indian club to win all age group national titles in the same year, 2017–18, winning U13, U15, U18 and the senior I-League.
2020–present
RoundGlass Sports bought 50% of Minerva Academy's share earlier; In 2020, they bought remaining 50% from owners Ranjit and Heena Bajaj to form RoundGlass Punjab a year later.In November 2020, Minerva Academy was accredited as Khelo India State Centre of Excellence by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. The same year, Sports Authority of India signed Memorandum of Understanding with Minerva for a period of four years under the "Khelo India Talent Identification and Development Program". The club became a regular participant in the Shaheed-e-Azam Sardar Bhagat Singh Memorial Tournament.
Crest and colours
Club crest and emblem of Minerva depicting emblems of the three armed forces, the Sikh khanda symbol and the profile of Minerva – the Roman goddess of wisdom.Club colours are predominantly blue, white and black.
Stadiums
The official home ground of Minerva Academy was Tau Devi Lal Stadium of Panchkula, used in the I-League, with a seating capacity of 12,000. The club previously used the Guru Nanak Stadium, but only for one season.During I-League Second Division, the club used Minerva Academy Ground in Chandigarh as home venue. When the club entered into continental tourney AFC Cup, they used various stadiums which could fit the competitions standards. During the group stage, club played two matches at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati, and remaining at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar. They previously used Sector 17 Training Ground in Chandigarh for training purposes.
The club is currently using Minerva Academy Ground, which is located in Chandigarh.
Kit manufacturers and shirt sponsors
Records and statistics
Overall records
Continental records
| Competition | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
| AFC Champions League | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | −4 |
| AFC Cup | 6 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 7 | −1 |
| Total | 7 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 6 | 11 | –5 |
Other records
- Top goalscorer in I-League, representing Minerva Punjab: Aser Pierrick Dipanda.
- Youngest goalscorer in AFC Cup: Thoiba Singh Moirangthem, representing Minerva Punjab: 1–1 tie vs Manang Marshyangdi; 15 May 2019.
- Maximum number of points earned in the country's highest division: 35.
- Highest scoring in domestic league: 5–4.
- Biggest margin win/most goals scored by a team in the AIFF Sub Junior League: 33–1 win against Namdhari Academy.
- Youngest goalscorer in I-League: Baoringdao Bodo, representing Minerva Punjab: 2–1 win vs Mumbai FC; 4 February 2017.
Performance in AFC competitions
Managerial record
| Name | Nationality | From | To | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | Win% | Ref. |
| Surinder Singh | 1 July 2015 | 5 January 2017 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| José Carlos Hevia | 5 January 2017 | 1 June 2017 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| Juan Luis Pérez Herrera | 1 June 2017 | 1 September 2017 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| Khogen Singh | 1 September 2017 | 31 May 2018 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| Sachin Badadhe | 31 May 2018 | 7 August 2018 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| Paul Munster | 8 August 2018 | 12 February 2019 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| Sachin Badadhe | 12 February 2019 | 30 June 2019 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| Yan Law | 1 July 2019 | 31 May 2020 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| Emerson Ricardo Alcântara | 2020 | 2021 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| Tushar Soodan | 2021 | 2023 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Minerva youth
Youth and academy
Since the foundation in 2005, Minerva focused on youth development, and has more than hundred residential academies in the country. Club's youth men's section has been participating in various age-group domestic competitions, including U13, U15, and U18 Hero Youth Leagues, in which they clinched multiple titles. Club's academy is responsible in nurturing talents, bringing up promising youngsters; Many of them graduated from the club's academy and went on to represent India internationally. In 2017–18, Spanish manager José Carlos Hevia served as head of Minerva's academy and reserve team. Ahead of the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup, club's reserve team appeared in an exhibition match against one of the participants Columbia U17. In June 2020, Minerva Academy was recommended for "Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar" for producing more than 70 players for the various India national football sides.In 2022, U12 team of Minerva Academy took part in Mina Cup, an youth international tournament held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. In that tournament, they won title with dominant performance, beating Barcelona Academy 4–0 in final. Later in July 2023, they went to Sweden, and took part in U13 category of the prestigious Gothia Cup. On 22 July, defeating Brazilian side Ordin by 3–1 in final at the SKF Arena, Minerva Academy became the first ever Indian team to clinch Gothia Cup title. In that edition, more than 150 teams competed; Minerva went on to seal the championship winning all their matches, scoring 46 goals, and conceding only 2. Club's academy gained an 'elite category' accreditation by the All India Football Federation in December 2023. The club won Sub Junior League title in 2024, defeating Bengaluru FC 7–4 in final. In October 2024, Minerva Academy's player Mohammad Razin made headlines by signing the Saudi U-15 Premier League side Al-Nassr FC U14 through passing the trials. In May 2025, the club clinched AIFF Sub-Junior League, defeating hosts FC Madras 2–1 in the final day. In July 2025, the U-14 team of the club took part in Helsinki Cup in Finland. In that tournament, Minerva Academy ended their campaign with a runners-up finish, scoring 42 goals in 10 matches, conceding just 1 goal, that too only in final against Finnish club PK-35. The club clinched Dana Cup title in Denmark in July 2025, defeating Maltese side KFF Club by 15–0 in the final; By the end of the tournament, Minerva Academy scored 110 goals in seven matches, conceding only one goal. In August 2025, the club clinched Norway Cup title in U14 boys category, scoring a staggering 130 goals across eight matches which made them the highest-scoring team in the tournament across all age groups.