Jiangsu Suning F.C.


Jiangsu Suning Football Club is a professional football club that participates in the Chinese Super League under licence from the Chinese Football Association. The team is based in Nanjing, Jiangsu and their home stadium is the Nanjing Olympic Sports Centre which has a seating capacity of 61,443. Their owners are Suning Appliance Group, a sister company of Suning.com; the name Suning derives from Sū, a nickname for Jiangsu province, and Níng, a nickname for Nanjing.
The team was founded in 1958 as Jiangsu Provincial Team while the current professional football club was established in March 1994. They were one of the founding members of the first fully professional top-tier league in China participating in the 1994 Chinese Jia-A League season; however, they faced relegation in that campaign. They have since gone on to win promotion back into the top tier at the end of the 2008 league season and achieved their best ever league position when they finished runners-up in the 2012 season and the 2016 season.
According to Forbes, Jiangsu are the fourth wealthiest football team in China, with a team value of $144 million, and an estimated revenue of $36 million in 2015.

History

The club was founded in April 1958 as Jiangsu Provincial Team by the local government and took part in the 1959 Chinese National Games where they placed twelfth. They joined the top tier of the gradually expanding Chinese football league system in 1960; finishing nineteenth out of twenty-five teams. By 1963, the league had expanded to thirty-nine teams and the Chinese Football Association decided they needed to reduce the number of participants in the league to twenty for the following season. Jiangsu finished seventh within their group stages, which relegated them from the league system. In 1964, they did not take part in any of the divisions but returned to play in the second tier in 1965 where they came seventh in the group stages.
The Chinese Cultural Revolution halted the league for several seasons. When it returned in 1973, Jiangsu was placed back into the top tier where they finished the league in eleventh. Jiangsu's time in the top tier did not last very long, and at the end of the 1978 season they were relegated to the second division. For the next several years, Jiangsu remained a second-tier club apart from a one-season top-tier stint in 1988. However, in 1992 they won the second tier title which guaranteed the club promotion to the country's first fully professional first-tier league in 1994, the Chinese Jia-A League, irrespective of where they finished in the 1993 season.
In March 1994, the club gained sponsorship and changed their name to Jiangsu Maint to comply with the requirements to take part in the 1994 Chinese Jia-A League season. They struggled with professionalism on and off the field and were relegated at the end of the season. The stricter operational costs of the league resulted in the club struggling financially, which was exacerbated by also losing their sponsorship. Over time, the club gained some financial support from several major Chinese businesses including Jiangsu TV, Jinling Petrochemical Company, several Jiangsu tobacco companies in addition to some international investment companies. The club changed their name to Jiangsu Jiajia as a result of sponsorship, however, the club's improved financial stability did not prevent relegation to the third tier at the end of the 1996 season. The club spent only one season in the third division before gaining promotion by winning the 1997 title.
On 7 January 2000, the manufacturing company Jiangsu Sainty International Group took over the club and changed the club's name to Jiangsu Sainty. The new owners did not get off to the best of starts when it was discovered they were unable to prevent some of their players and coaches from taking bribes; maleficence was shown to have taken place in the 6 October game of the 2001 season in a 4–2 loss to Chengdu Wuniu. The offending participants were banned for a year while the club had three months to reform and re-apply for a Chinese Football Association playing license. After promising to clean up the club, the team lingered in the second tier for several years until they brought in Pei Encai to manage the team, which resulted in a division title and promotion at the end of the 2008 season.
The introduction of Serbian manager Dragan Okuka during the 2011 league season saw a significant improvement in league table finishes; a fourth-place finish at the end of the campaign and a runners-up position in the 2012 season. Off the field the Jiangsu Sainty International Group was merged into Guoxin Group in 2011 to form Jiangsu Guoxin Investment Group Limited which saw the Guoxin Group become the owner of the club. The club's name remained as Jiangsu Sainty F.C. until January 2014, when they changed into Jiangsu Guoxin-Sainty F.C.
On the field under Dragan Okuka the club had a difficult 2013 league season and were almost relegated, leading to the club deciding not to renew his contract. By the 2015 league season Romanian manager Dan Petrescu was brought into Jiangsu and in 2015 the team won the Chinese FA Cup for the first time and qualified for the 2016 AFC Champions League. On 21 December 2015 the club was purchased by Suning Appliance Group for ¥523 million and changed their name as Jiangsu Suning F.C.
In January 2016, Jiangsu Suning broke their transfer fee record twice in the same window, with a fee of £25 million paid for Ramires from Chelsea FC, and later fellow Brazilian Alex Teixeira for a fee of €50 million from Shakhtar Donetsk. The club went on to have one successful season, finishing second in the 2016 Chinese Super League and the 2016 Chinese FA Cup. It was the club's second straight appearance in the Finals of the Chinese FA Cup. In 2017 the club reached the knockout stages of the 2017 AFC Champions League for the first time in their history. However, they missed the Champions League for the next two years, 2018 and 2019, due to struggles in domestic competitions.

Rivalries

The club has rivalries with neighbouring Jiangnan club's Hangzhou Greentown F.C. and Shanghai-based teams Shanghai Greenland Shenhua F.C. and Shanghai SIPG F.C. where they contest the Yangtze Delta Derby. The rivalry with Shanghai Greenland Shenhua is the oldest and fiercest and can be dated as far back as the 1960 league championship. When Jiangsu were relegated to the second tier in 1978 it put a halt to the rivalry between the two clubs, which was not properly reignited until 2009 when both teams were simultaneously back in the top flight and hostilities were able to flare-up again. A direct fight for silverware between these two teams finally emerged when they competed in the 2015 Chinese FA Cup final, which saw Jiangsu won 1–0 to claim their first Cup win.
The Nanjing derby was a local inner city derby against Nanjing Yoyo F.C. that started when Nanjing Yoyo moved into the same city as Jiangsu and into their former home ground of Wutaishan Stadium. Their first meeting occurred in Nanjing Yoyo's home ground on 19 July 2003 in a second-tier league game, which ended in a 1–1 draw. For six seasons the two teams fought to be the dominant club within Nanjing City with Jiangsu predominately the stronger side with four wins, seven draws and only one defeat. When Jiangsu won promotion to the top tier at the end of the 2008 league season it put a halt to the derby and Nanjing Yoyo were subsequently dissolved on 7 May 2011 due to finical difficulties.

Players

First team

Reserve team

As of 1 March 2019

Unregistered players

Out on loan

Coaching staff

Managerial history

Managers who have coached the club and team since Jiangsu Sainty became a professional club back in 1994.
This list contains both honors received as a professional team and as a semi-professional team.

League

Chinese Jia-A League/Chinese Super League
Chinese Jia B League/Chinese League One
Chinese Yi League/Chinese League Two
Chinese FA Cup
Chinese FA Super Cup

All-time league rankings

As of the end of 2019 season.
YearDivPtsPos.FA CupSuper CupLeague CupAFCAtt./GStadium
1960114347915−6819DNE – –-
19611703438−5310 – –-
196211760111638−22419 – –-
1963114464711−477 – –-
19652107 – –-
197311910543213191511 – –-
1974122112941338921 – –-
197618026218−1629 – –-
19771166551921−2515 – – –
1978130312151850−321814 – –-
1979242171114434124510 – –-
19802301299342410337 – –-
198123013 – 172612 – –-
198223016 –1431363247 – –-
19832155 –101013 – –-
1984287DNQ – –-
198621554R1 – –DNQ
198722069520182215 – –DNQ
19881206591821−32614 – –DNQ
19892229582316736.55 – –DNQ
199022278718180295R1 – –DNQ
1991216310315132176QF – –DNQ
1992214626131216WR1 – –DNQWutaishan Stadium
19932520/0336−345 – –DNQWutaishan Stadium
199412218131344−311012 – –DNQWutaishan Stadium
19952226972021−1277R1DNQ –DNQWutaishan Stadium
19962221714832−241012R1DNQ –DNQ
19973171133259166WDNQDNQ –DNQ
19982221021024231324R2DNQ –DNQWutaishan Stadium
199922266102328−5249R1DNQ –DNQWutaishan Stadium
2000222106630273363R1DNQ –DNQWutaishan Stadium
2001222115629209385R2DNQ –DNQ15,455Wutaishan Stadium
2002222710518135315R1DNQ –DNQ6,818Wutaishan Stadium
20032261367372512454R1DNQ –DNQ9,923Yangzhou Stadium
200423213118352411506R1DNQDNQ4,959Wutaishan Stadium
20052261385432122475R1DNQDNQ4,225Wutaishan Stadium
200622496937316336R2DNQ5,317Wutaishan Stadium
20072241464412120483DNQ14,167Nanjing Olympic Sports Centre
2008224192356242359WDNQ7,692Nanjing Olympic Sports Centre
200913091011303003710DNQ15,976Nanjing Olympic Sports Centre
201013081111272703511DNQ10,667Nanjing Olympic Sports Centre
201113014511432815474R1DNQ17,170Nanjing Olympic Sports Centre
20121301412449292054RUR3DNQDNQ31,163Nanjing Olympic Sports Centre
2013130711123239−73213QFWGroup28,808Nanjing Olympic Sports Centre
Zhenjiang Sports and Exhibition Center
2014130910113745−8378RUDNQDNQ24,349Nanjing Olympic Sports Centre
Zhenjiang Sports and Exhibition Center
201513098133948−9359WDNQDNQ26,858Nanjing Olympic Sports Centre
2016130176753332057RURURUGroup38,992Nanjing Olympic Sports Centre
2017130711124045−53212QFRUR1632,697Nanjing Olympic Sports Centre
20181301398483315485QFDNQDNQ32,508Nanjing Olympic Sports Centre
20191301587604119534R16DNQDNQ27,508Nanjing Olympic Sports Centre
20201DNQDNQ-

Key


As of 24 May 2017
SeasonCompetitionRoundOppositionHomeAway
2013AFC Champions LeagueGroup E FC Seoul0–21–5
2013AFC Champions LeagueGroup E Vegalta Sendai0–02–1
2013AFC Champions LeagueGroup E Buriram United2–00–2
2016AFC Champions LeagueGroup E Becamex Bình Dương3–01–1
2016AFC Champions LeagueGroup E Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors3–22–2
2016AFC Champions LeagueGroup E FC Tokyo1–20–0
2017AFC Champions LeagueGroup H Jeju United1–21–0
2017AFC Champions LeagueGroup H Adelaide United2–11–0
2017AFC Champions LeagueGroup H Gamba Osaka3–01–0
2017AFC Champions LeagueRound of 16 Shanghai SIPG2–31–2

Asian clubs ranking

Current RankCountryTeam
61Bangkok United
62Naft Tehran
63Guangzhou R&F
64Jiangsu Suning FC
65Arema FC
66Al Fateh FC
67Western Sydney Wanderers