 | |||
| Full name | Pakistan Air Force Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Short name | PAF | ||
| Founded | 1947; 78 years ago (1947) | ||
| Ground | PAF Complex | ||
| Capacity | 2,000 | ||
| Owner | Pakistan Air Force | ||
| Chairman | AM Asim Suleman | ||
| Manager | Salman Chaudhry | ||
Pakistan Air Force Football Club, abbreviated asPAF FC, serves as thefootball section ofPakistan Air Force. The club used to compete in theNational Football Championship andPakistan Premier League. It regularly participates in theNational Football Challenge Cup.
Pakistan Air Force football team was established in 1947, shortly after thePartition of British India, and the consequent partition of the British Indian military forces. Members serving in theRoyal Indian Air Force both as employees and players, such asMoideen Kutty, immediately became part of the newly established Pakistan Air Force and their sport teams.[1] In their early years, from 1947 till 1956, the football team was named as Royal Pakistan Air Force (RPAF).[2][3][4]
In the 1950s, Pakistan Air Force played the Inter-Services Football Championship at the domestic level in Pakistan.[5][6][7][8][9] In August 1960, PAF won the fifth Ismail Gold Shield Football Tournament, which featured guest teams fromIndia andIran.[10][11] In 1961, PAF played a friendly game against the Iranian clubShahin F.C., with PAF international forwardFaqir Hussain scoring all 4 goals for his team in a match which ended in a 6–4 defeat.[12]
In 1963, the club were runners-up in theAll-Pakistan Mohammad Ali Bogra Memorial Football Tournament, losing 1–3 toVictoria SC in the final held inRawalpindi.[13]
In the 1981National Football Championship, it finished as runner-up, losing toPakistan Airlines in the final.[14]
Pakistan Air Force clinched gold in the in the first edition of football when it was introduced in theNational Games of Pakistan.
Their firstNational Football Championship title came in 1986, defeatingPakistan Airlines in the final.[14] Consequently, at the1987 Asian Club Championship qualifying round inDhaka from 8 till 16 June 1987, the team was placed in a group stage with winning sides fromIndia,Bangladesh,Nepal andIraq. India'sMohun Bagan outplayed PAF 4–1. With 3–0 lead at interval, the margin widened by another goal in the second half. PAF's only goal came in the second half from Abdul Rahman.[15] Nepal'sManag Marshyangdi trounced PAF 4–1. The lone goal for PAF was scored by Abdul Shakoor.[15] The Iraqi ClubAl-Rasheed defeated PAF by 10–0 . This was the third defeat in a row for the PAF, thus the team failed to qualify for the final round of the Asian Clubs Championship.[15]
They were promoted to thePakistan Premier League from thePFF League after finishing second toBaloch Nushki in the2007–08 season.
At the end of 2013 after the appointment of coachShahzad Anwar, Air Force ended up in fourth position in the2013–14 Pakistan Premier League season,[16] and ended up champions in the2014 National Football Challenge Cup.[17]
It won the2018 National Challenge Cup, after defeatingWAPDA 2–1 in the finals.[18][19]
Following the domestic football revamp in the country in 2023, departmental clubs including Air Force remained competing in theNational Football Challenge Cup.[20][21]
Win Draw Loss
| Season | Competition | Round | Club | First leg | Second leg | Aggregate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987–88 | Asian Club Championship | Qualifying Stage |  Mohun Bagan | 1–4 | ||
 Dhaka Mohammedan | 1–3 | |||||
 Manang Marsyangdi | 1–4 | |||||
 Al Rasheed | 0–10 | |||||
