Gokulam Kerala FC (women)

Indian women's association football team

This article is about the women's football team. For the men's team, see Gokulam Kerala FC.

Football club

Gokulam Kerala Women

Full name| Gokulam Kerala Football Club Women
Nickname(s)| The Malabarians
Short name| GKFC
Founded| January 2018; 7 years ago (2018-01)
Ground| EMS Stadium
Malappuram District Sports Complex Stadium
Capacity| 50,000
30,000
Owner| Sree Gokulam Group
President| V. C. Praveen
Head coach| Vacant
League| Indian Women's League
Kerala Women's League
2023–24| IWL, 2nd of 7
KWL, Champions
Website| gokulamkeralafc.com

Home colours

Away colours

|

Current season

Gokulam Kerala FC Women is an Indian women's football section of Gokulam Kerala FC.[1][2] They participated in Indian Women's League (IWL),[3] the premier women's football league in India.[4] They won the first IWL In 2019–20.[5] They then retained the title in 2021–22 and 2022–23. In 2021, they became the first club to represent India in AFC Women's Club Championship.

## Crest

[edit]

Theyyam is a popular ritual form of worship in North Kerala

The club logo incorporates elements from historical Theyyam, a famous ritual art form that originated in northern Kerala. It encompasses dance, mime and music.[6]

## Stadium

[edit]

EMS Stadium on a matchday

Gokulam Kerala Women plays most of its home matches at the EMS Stadium, which is located in the heart of Calicut.[7] They used the Malappuram District Sports Complex Stadium after allegations surfaced that the corporation authorities were not happy with the state of the EMS Stadium under GKFC's maintenance.

## Supporters

[edit]

Kerala is a state known for its passionate football fans.[8] Football in Northern Kerala (known as Malabar Coastal Region) has arguably one of the most passionate fanbase in the state.[9][10] "GKFC Battalia" is one of the largest supporters' group of Gokulam Kerala FC.[11][12] Another noted supporters' group of the club is named "GKFC Ultras".[13]

## Technical staff

[edit]

As of 8 January 2025
Position  | Name

|

Head coach  |  Ranjan Chowdhury
Assistant coach  |  Rutuja Gunwant
Goalkeeper coach  |  Adil Ansari
Team manager  |  Azlam Shafi
Physio  |  Leema Vinod
Nutritionist  |  Anjali
Video Analyst  |  Anjitha
Media Manager  |  Muhammad Sufail

## Squad

[edit]

As of 8 January 2025[14]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

| No. | Pos. | Nation  | Player

|
|
|

1  | GK |  IND | Payal Basude
2  | DF |  IND | Thounaojam Kritina Devi
3  | DF |  IND | Dhurga P.
4  | DF |  IND | Hemam Shilky Devi
6  | DF |  IND | Martina Thokchom
7  | MF |  IND | Nongmaithem Ratanbala Devi (captain)
10  | FW |  UGA | Fazila Ikwaput
11  | FW |  IND | Manasa K.
12  | DF |  IND | Asem Roja Devi
13  | DF |  KEN | Phoeby Okech
15  | MF |  IND | Soniya Jose
16  | DF |  IND | Shubhangi Singh
17  | MF |  IND | Muskan Subba
18  | MF |  IND | Harmilan Kaur
| No. | Pos. | Nation  | Player

|
|
|

20  | FW |  IND | Greeshma M. P.
22  | FW |  IND | Arathy P. M.
23  | FW |  IND | Heigrujam Daya Devi
25  | FW |  KEN | Catherine Aringo
31  | GK |  IND | Anitha S.
32  | GK |  IND | Aleena James
42  | MF |  IND | Baby Lalchhandami
55  | DF |  IND | Alexiba Samson
71  | FW |  IND | Mahalakshmi
77  | FW |  IND | R. Darshini Devi
88  | DF |  IND | Pranita Nimkar
98  | MF |  IND | Harshika Jain
99  | DF |  IND | Th Sahena

## Coaching history

[edit]

Dates  | Name  | Ref

|
|

2017–2020  |  Priya P. V. |
2021–2022  |  Anthony Andrews |
2022  |  Priya P. V. |
2022–2024  |  Anthony Andrews |
2024–  |  Ranjan Choudhary  |

## Club captains

[edit]

List of Gokulam Kerala Women's Football Team captains since its establishment.

Period  | Name

|

2017–18  |  Anita Rawat
2019–20  |  Michel Castanha
2021–22  |  Aditi Chauhan
2022–23  |  Loitongbam Ashalata Devi
2023–24  |  Grace Dangmei
2024–  |  Nongmaithem Ratanbala Devi

## Seasons

[edit]

As of 24 March 2024
Season  | Indian Women's League | KWL | AFC Championship | League Top Scorer

|
|
|
|

Tier | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | Pts | Pos | Name(s) | Goals
2017–18 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 12 | 4 | 5th  | DNP  | –  |  Fazila Ikwaput | 5
2018–19 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 18 | 5 | 15 | Semi Finals  | DNP  | –  |  Anju Tamang | 5
2019–20 | 1 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 4 | 15 | Champions  | DNP  | –  |  Sabitra Bhandari | 16
2020–21 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | NA[15] | DNP  | 3rd |  |
2021–22 | 1 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 66 | 4 | 33 | Champions  | Champions  | DNP[16] |  Elshaddai Acheampong | 20
2022–23 | 1 | 10 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 64 | 7 | 26 | Champions  | Runners Up  | GS |  Sabitra Bhandari | 29
2023–24 | 1 | 12 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 33 | 5 | 29 | Runners Up  | Champions  | DNQ  |  Fazila Ikwaput | 13

## Performance in AFC competitions

[edit]

### AFC Women's Club Championship

[edit]

Winner of the 2020–21 Indian Women's League season would originally get the chance to participate in 2021 edition of AFC Women's Club Championship. As a backup, if the season is unable to complete, defending champions of 2019–20 season, Gokulam Kerala FC, will qualify for the event.[17] Later, on 15 July 2021, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) nominated Gokulam Kerala to represent India in the AFC Women's Club Championship 2020–21 pilot tournament.[18]

Season  | Competition  | Round  | Club  | Score  | Position  | Top scorer

|
|
|
|
|
|

2021 | AFC Women's Club Championship | Round-robin |  Amman | 1–2  |  |  Elshaddai Achempong
(2 goals)
Shahrdari Sirjan | 0–1
Bunyodkor  | 3–1
2022 | AFC Women's Club Championship | Group stage |  Sogdiyona Jizzak | Match abandoned due to FIFA ban on AIFF
Bam Khatoon
2023 | AFC Women's Club Championship | Group stage |  Urawa Red Diamonds | 0–7  | GS
(2nd)  |  Veronica Appiah
(3 goals)
Hualien | 1–1
Bangkok | 4–3

## Honours

[edit]

### Continental

[edit]

* AFC Women's Club Championship
* Third place (1): 2021

### Domestic

[edit]

* Indian Women's League
* Champions (3): 2019–20,[19] 2021–22, 2022–23[20][21]
* Kerala Women's League
* Champions (2): 2021–22, 2023–24
* Runners-up (1): 2022–23

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Gokulam Kerala FC embarrass Kenkre FC 10-1 in Indian Women's League". timesofindia.com. Archived from the original on 28 April 2022. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
2. ^ 17:49 IST, TEAM SPORTSTAR (13 July 2022). "Indian footballers Jyoti and Soumya selected for trials at ZNK Dinamo Zagreb". sportstar.thehindu.com. Sportstar. Archived from the original on 13 July 2022. Retrieved 13 July 2022.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
3. ^ "Indian Women's League 2018-19 to kick off on May 5 in Ludhiana | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Archived from the original on 13 April 2019. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
4. ^ "Gokulam Kerala crowned new Hero IWL champions after thrilling finale". AIFF. 14 February 2020. Archived from the original on 15 February 2020. Retrieved 15 February 2020.
5. ^ "Gokulam Kerala crowned new Hero IWL champions after thrilling finale". Archived from the original on 15 February 2020.
6. ^ Kusuman, K. K. (1990). A Panorama of Indian Culture: Professor A. Sreedhara Menon Felicitation Volume. Mittal Publications. ISBN 978-81-7099-214-1. Archived from the original on 17 June 2024. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
7. ^ EMS Stadium: Our home Archived 2021-04-21 at the Wayback Machine Gokulam Kerala FC (official website). Retrieved 21 April 2021
8. ^ Acharya, Srinath (19 May 2017). "Kerala: The paradoxical Indian state where football rivals cricket". khelnow.com. Khel Now. Archived from the original on 7 May 2021. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
9. ^ Gokulam Kerala FC taking football forward on Malabar Coast Archived 9 September 2023 at the Wayback Machine. [1] Archived 9 September 2023 at the Wayback Machine. The Times of India. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
10. ^ Thoyakkat, Harigovind (10 May 2021). "How Kerala Blasters can learn from Gokulam Kerala's I-League success". khelnow.com. Khel Now. Archived from the original on 10 May 2021. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
11. ^ Nafie, Abdul (3 March 2018). "Gokulam Kerala FC to honour former Indian football stars". sportskeeda.com. Sportskeeda. Archived from the original on 25 March 2022. Retrieved 3 March 2018.
12. ^ "When it comes to attendance figures, is the I-League better than the ISL?". amp.scroll.in. Scroll. Archived from the original on 11 May 2021. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
13. ^ PS, Sreerag (7 April 2023). "'Stepmotherly treatment to I-League clubs': Gokulam Kerala fans irate over no Super Cup qualifiers live telecast". thesouthfirst.com. Kochi: The South First News. Archived from the original on 10 October 2023. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
14. ^ "Indian Women's League Squad". AIFF. Retrieved 8 January 2025.
15. ^ "Indian Women's League 2021 postponed indefinitely". ESPN. 6 April 2021. Archived from the original on 13 April 2023. Retrieved 19 June 2021.
16. ^ "Gokulam Kerala FC confirm they cannot play in AFC Women's Club Championship". scroll.in. Archived from the original on 28 May 2023. Retrieved 13 April 2023.
17. ^ "AIFF keen to host women's league by September in light of continental invite". The New Indian Express. Archived from the original on 26 May 2021. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
18. ^ "Gokulam Kerala FC to represent India in AFC Women's Club Championship". The Indian Express. 15 July 2021. Archived from the original on 14 May 2022. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
19. ^ "Gokulam Kerala crowned new Hero IWL champions after thrilling finale". the-aiff.com. All India Football Federation. 14 February 2020. Archived from the original on 15 February 2020. Retrieved 15 February 2020.
20. ^ "Indian Women's League 2023: Gokulam Kerala thrash Kickstart FC 5–0 to win third consecutive title". sportstar.thehindu.com. Chennai: Sportstar. 21 May 2023. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
21. ^ "Gokulam Kerala steamroll Kickstart to complete hat-trick of Hero IWL titles". the-aiff.com. All India Football Federation. 21 May 2023. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 21 May 2023.

## External links

[edit]

* Gokulam Kerala FC on Twitter

* v
* t
* e

Football in Kerala

Kerala Football Association

State teams|

* Kerala football team
* Kerala women's football team

Clubs|

| ISL|

* Kerala Blasters

|

I-League|

* Gokulam Kerala
* Sports Academy Tirur (I-League 2)
* Kerala United FC (I-League 3)

KPL|

* FC Kerala
* Kerala United
* Kovalam
* Golden Threads
* Kerala Police
* Eagles
* SBI Kerala

SLK|

* Malappuram FC
* Calicut FC
* Thiruvananthapuram Kombans
* Thrissur Magic
* Kannur Warriors
* Forca Kochi

Indian Women's League|

* Gokulam Kerala Women
* Kerala Blasters W.F.C.

League competitions|

* Kerala Premier League
* Kerala Women's League

Cup competitions|

* Sait Nagjee Football Tournament
* Scissors Cup (defunct)
* Kerala State Club Football Championship (defunct)
* N.I. David Memorial Trophy

Stadiums|

* Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium
* Kottappadi Football Stadium
* Calicut Medical College Stadium
* Chandrasekharan Nair Stadium
* EMS Stadium
* Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium, Kollam
* Malappuram District Sports Complex Stadium
* Thrissur Municipal Corporation Stadium

Others|

* Sevens football
* R B Ferguson Club
* Football in Thrissur

* v
* t
* e

Sports teams based in Kerala

Cricket|

Ranji Trophy
Kerala
IPL
Kochi Tuskers Kerala (now defunct)
CCL
Kerala Strikers

Football|

ISL
Kerala Blasters
I-League
Gokulam F.C.
Chirag United (now defunct)
I-League 2nd Division
Kerala Blasters (R)
F.C. Kerala
Kerala United FC
Indian Women's League
Gokulam F.C. Women
Elite League
Kerala Blasters (R)
Gokulam F.C.
F.C. Kerala
MSP Football Academy
Santosh Trophy
Kerala
KPL
F.C. Kerala
FC Thrissur
Gokulam F.C.
Kerala Blasters (R)
Kerala United FC
SBI Kerala
Sports Academy Tirur

Futsal|

APFC
Kerala Blasters FC
AFCC
Kerala Blasters FC

Volleyball|

Prime VL
Kochi Blue Spikers
Calicut Heroes
*[No.]: Number
*[Pos.]: Position
*[GK]: Goalkeeper
*[DF]: Defender
*[MF]: Midfielder
*[FW]: Forward
*[Ref]: References
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template