The club's roots can be traced as far as back in the 1910s but the officially recognised history of the club started in 1935 when Dar es Salaam residents who were grouped as Africans by the colonial administration in Tanganyika decided to form a football club of theirs to compete in a league which was full of 'non-African' football clubs. The name New Young is said to be the club's first name and later it was replaced by the name Dar es Salaam Young Africans SC and eventually, the name changed to Young Africans Sports Club. The club was popular with Africans and became the symbol of the movement to attain Independence from colonial shackles, the club became associated with Nationalists and all freedom fighters, and it was so influential that the party TANU which led the fight against colonial administration, adopted the colours Yellow and Green as the party's primary colours. After its establishment in 1935, its members squabbled over their team's poor performance and results. The club had an even poorer and unsatisfactory performance in 1936 that caused some of the members to split and form another team. The proponents of breaking away were Arabs who saw fit to cause conflict among the club members that led to a split. They succeeded and together with dissidents, formed a club known as Queens F.C. The name was later changed to Sunderland and then to Simba S.C. which is the club's current name. Yanga became the club's unofficial name, but a very common one among many people, but many people believe the name 'Yanga' is a poor pronunciation of the word 'Young'. The two teams, Young Africans S.C. and Simba S.C. have been rivals ever since. The teams makes up one of the most entertaining, eye-catching and talked about derbies in Africa. Young Africans S.C. is the most successful Tanzanian football club; the second being Simba S.C, the current Champions of Tanzania. The club has also secured several other international trophies including CECAFA cup. Shabani Nonda is the most notable player to play for the club. He had a stint with Yanga in the middle of the 1990s before heading to Vaal Professionals based in South Africa. Other prominent players who have played for Yanga are Elias Michael, Maulid Dilunga, Sunday Manara "Computer", Kassim Manara and Moro Lamine.
