{{refimprove|date=January 2020}} {{Infobox football league season | logo = S League.svg | competition = [[S.League]] | season = 1996 | winners = [[Geylang International|Geylang United]]<br/>1st S.League title | continentalcup1 = [[1997–98 Asian Club Championship|Asian Club Championship]] | continentalcup1 qualifiers = [[Geylang International|Geylang United]] | matches = 113 | total goals = 364 | league topscorer = {{flagicon|CRO}} [[Jure Ereš]] (28) | biggest home win = [[SAF FC|Singapore Armed Forces]] 5-0 [[Tampines Rovers]] <br/><small>(27 July 1996)</small><br/> [[Tiong Bahru United]] 5-0 [[Sembawang Rangers]] <br/><small>(19 October 1996)</small> | biggest away win = [[Home United|Police FC]] 0-5 [[Tiong Bahru United]] <br/><small>(5 October 1996)</small> | highest scoring = [[SAF FC|Singapore Armed Forces]] 6-2 [[Sembawang Rangers]]<br/>(11 May 1996)<br/> [[Home United|Police FC]] 3-5 [[Woodlands Wellington]] <br/><small>(19 October 1996)</small> | nextseason = [[1997 S.League|1997]] }}

The '''1996 [[S.League]]''' was the 1st season of the [[S.League]], the top professional [[association football|football]] league in [[Singapore]].

The S.League came into existence as a result of a fragmenting of relations between Singapore and Malaysian football associations. A dispute over the division of gate receipts for the Singapore representative in the Malaysian Premier League saw Singapore withdraw from the competition in 1995, ending a footballing connection between the two nations that stretched back to 1921, with the first participation of a Singapore team in the [[Malaysia Cup|Malaya Cup]].

The semi-professional [[FAS Premier League]] was founded in 1988, but had failed to find support amongst the local communities and media. The S.League was therefore created to fill the need to have a fully professional football league within Singapore. The [[Football Association of Singapore]] invited applications for clubs to compete in the newly formed league. Eight successful applications were made, these eight teams took part in a two-stage league season, with the winner of each stage qualifying for the end of season championship decider. The first half of the season was known as the [[Tiger Beer]] Series and the second half was known as the [[Pioneer Corporation|Pioneer]] Series.

[[Geylang International|Geylang United]] defeated [[Singapore Armed Forces FC]] in the end of season championship Playoff to be crowned the [[1996 Geylang United FC season|1st S.League champions]].

==Clubs== Eight sides took part in the first S.League campaign; two of whom had been competitors in the former [[FAS Premier League|Singapore Premier League]]. These former Premier League clubs were Balestier United FC who changed their name upon joining the S.League to [[Balestier Khalsa|Balestier Central]] and the former Singapore Premier League powerhouse Geylang International, winners of six back-to-back Premier League titles, who renamed themselves [[Geylang United FC|Geylang United]] for the first S.League season. The rest were clubs drawn from the amateur National Football League: [[Home United FC|Police]], [[Singapore Armed Forces FC|Singapore Armed Forces]], [[Tampines Rovers]], [[Tanjong Pagar United|Tiong Bahru United]] and Wellington Football Club, who renamed themselves [[Woodlands Wellington]].

[[Sembawang Rangers F.C.|Sembawang Rangers]] were formed from a merger between two NFL sides, Gibraltar Crescent and Sembawang Sports Club.

{{Location map+ |Singapore |width=800 |float=none |caption=Location of teams in '''1996 S.League'''| places= {{Location map~ |Singapore |lat=1.330401 |long=103.852891 |label=[[Balestier Central]]|position=left}} {{Location map~ |Singapore |lat=1.326406 |long=103.939264 |label=[[Geylang United]]|position=right}} {{Location map~ |Singapore |lat=1.310016 |long=103.860347 |label=[[Home United FC|Police]]|position=right}} {{Location map~ |Singapore |lat=1.412389 |long=103.832334 |label=[[Sembawang Rangers]]|position=right}} {{Location map~ |Singapore |lat=1.33327 |long=103.719429 |label=[[Singapore Armed Forces FC|Singapore Armed Forces]]|position=left}} {{Location map~ |Singapore |lat=1.352904 |long=103.940524 |label=[[Tampines Rovers]]|position=top}} {{Location map~ |Singapore |lat=1.29589 |long=103.802417 |label=[[Tiong Bahru United]]|position=bottom}} {{Location map~ |Singapore |lat=1.434591 |long=103.780788 |label=[[Woodlands Wellington]]|position=left}} }}

{| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! Team ! Stadium ! Capacity ! Location |- |[[Balestier Central]] || [[Toa Payoh Stadium]] | style="text-align:center;"| 3,900 || [[Toa Payoh]] |- |[[Geylang United]] || [[Bedok Stadium]] | style="text-align:center;"| 3,900 || [[Bedok]] |- |[[Home United|Police]] || [[Jalan Besar Stadium]] | style="text-align:center;"| 8,000 || [[Kallang]] |- |[[Singapore Armed Forces FC|Singapore Armed Forces]] || [[Jurong Stadium]] | style="text-align:center;"| 6,000 || [[Jurong]] |- |[[Sembawang Rangers]] || [[Yishun Stadium]] | style="text-align:center;"| 3,400 || [[Yishun]] |- |[[Tampines Rovers]] || [[Tampines Stadium]] | style="text-align:center;"| 3,600 || [[Tampines]] |- |[[Tiong Bahru United]] || [[Queenstown Stadium]] | style="text-align:center;"| 3,800 || [[Queenstown, Singapore|Queenstown]] |- |[[Woodlands Wellington]] || [[Woodlands Stadium]] | style="text-align:center;"| 4,300 || [[Woodlands, Singapore|Woodlands]] |}

==Foreign players== {| class="wikitable" |- ! style="width:190px;"| Club ! style="width:190px;"| Player 1 ! style="width:190px;"| Player 2 ! style="width:190px;"| Player 3 ! style="width:190px;"| Player 4 ! style="width:190px;"| Player 5 |- | [[Balestier Central]] | {{flagicon|FRY}} [[Ljutvo Bugucanin]] | {{flagicon|CRO}} [[Goran Paulić]] | {{flagicon|CRO}} [[Marko Kraljević (footballer)|Marko Kraljević]] | {{flagicon|FRY}} [[Esad Sejdic]] | {{flagicon|Liberia}} [[Nathaniel Klay Naplah]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.balestierkhalsafc.com/match/72|title=balestierkhalsafc.com|website=www.balestierkhalsafc.com}}</ref> |- | [[Geylang United]] | {{flagicon|IRN}} [[Mohammad Khakpour]] | {{flagicon|IRN}} [[Hamid Reza Estili]] | {{Flagicon|NZ}} [[Chris Riley (New Zealand footballer)|Chris Riley]] | {{flagicon|CRO}} [[Zlatko Vidan]] | {{flagicon|IRN}} [[Mohsen Garousi]] |- | [[Home United|Police]] | {{flagicon|BRA}} [[Egmar Goncalves]] | {{flagicon|BRA}} Fabio da Silva | {{flagicon|BRA}} [[Joao Batista Neto]] | {{flagicon|BRA}} [[Sergio Cleveland]] | {{flagicon|BRA}} |- | [[Singapore Armed Forces FC|Singapore Armed Forces]] | {{flagicon|CRO}} [[Ivica Raguž]] | {{flagicon|CRO}} [[Jure Ereš]] | {{flagicon|CRO}} [[Velimir Crljen]] | {{flagicon|CRO}} [[Davor Mioč]] | {{flagicon|CRO}} [[Goran Grubesic]] |- | [[Sembawang Rangers]] | {{flagicon|BRA}} Anderson Da Silva | {{flagicon|HUN}} [[Laszlo Kardos]] | {{flagicon|NZ}} [[Mark Atkinson (footballer)|Mark Atkinson]] | {{flagicon|SEN}} Ousmane N'Diaye | {{flagicon|}} |- | [[Tampines Rovers]] | {{flagicon|HUN}} [[Nagy Gabor]] | {{flagicon|BRA}} Marco Antonio | {{flagicon|AUS}} [[Scott O'Donell]] | {{flagicon|GHA}} [[Seidu Suleiman Anas]] | {{flagicon|CRO}} [[Nikolic Miroslav]] |- | [[Tiong Bahru United]] | {{flagicon|AUS}} [[Vlado Bozinoski]] | {{flagicon|SVK}} [[Tibor Szaban]] | {{flagicon|AUS}} David Miller | {{flagicon|AUS}} [[Pedro Ricoy]] | {{flagicon|AUS}} [[Ivan Kelic]] |- | [[Woodlands Wellington]] | {{flagicon|CRO}} [[Ervin Boban]] | {{flagicon|CRO}} [[Sandro Radun]] | {{flagicon|CZE}} [[Jan Janostak]] | {{flagicon|AUS}} Joe Caleta | {{flagicon|ENG}} Steven Rocknean |- |}

==League tables== ===Series 1 (Tiger Beer Series)=== <onlyinclude>{{#invoke:Sports table|main|style=football |update=complete |section=Series 1 |source=[https://www.rsssf.org/tabless/sing96.html RSSSF]

|team1=GLU |team2=WLW | team3=BLC |team4=SAF |team5=TBU |team6=POL |team7=SEM |team8=TAM |result1 = CSP

|win_BLC=7 |draw_BLC=3 |loss_BLC=4 |gf_BLC=22 |ga_BLC=18 |win_GLU=9 |draw_GLU=1 |loss_GLU=4 |gf_GLU=27 |ga_GLU=14 |win_POL=4 |draw_POL=5 |loss_POL=5 |gf_POL=22 |ga_POL=23 |win_SEM=3 |draw_SEM=4 |loss_SEM=7 |gf_SEM=17 |ga_SEM=32 |win_SAF=5 |draw_SAF=3 |loss_SAF=6 |gf_SAF=27 |ga_SAF=25 |win_TAM=3 |draw_TAM=3 |loss_TAM=8 |gf_TAM=18 |ga_TAM=27 |win_TBU=4 |draw_TBU=5 |loss_TBU=5 |gf_TBU=20 |ga_TBU=19 |win_WLW=8 |draw_WLW=2 |loss_WLW=4 |gf_WLW=25 |ga_WLW=20

|name_BLC = [[Balestier Central]] |name_GLU = [[Geylang United]] |name_POL = [[Home United|Police FC]] |name_SEM = [[Sembawang Rangers]] |name_SAF = [[Singapore Armed Forces FC|Singapore Armed Forces]] |name_TAM = [[Tampines Rovers]] |name_TBU = [[Tiong Bahru United]] |name_WLW = [[Woodlands Wellington]]

|show_limit=5 |class_rules = 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored |res_col_header=Q |col_CSP=green1 |text_CSP=Qualification to<br>[[#S.League Championship Playoff|S.League Championship<br>play-off match]] }}</onlyinclude>

===Series 2 (Pioneer Series)=== <onlyinclude>{{#invoke:Sports table|main|style=football |section=Series 2 |update=complete |source=[https://www.rsssf.org/tabless/sing96.html RSSSF]

|team1=SAF |team2=TBU | team3=BLC |team4=WLW |team5=GLU |team6=SEM |team7=TAM |team8=POL |result1 = CSP

|win_BLC=7 |draw_BLC=3 |loss_BLC=4 |gf_BLC=25 |ga_BLC=19 |win_GLU=6 |draw_GLU=3 |loss_GLU=5 |gf_GLU=20 |ga_GLU=16 |win_POL=2 |draw_POL=2 |loss_POL=10 |gf_POL=18 |ga_POL=40 |win_SEM=4 |draw_SEM=3 |loss_SEM=7 |gf_SEM=14 |ga_SEM=23 |win_SAF=9 |draw_SAF=5 |loss_SAF=0 |gf_SAF=32 |ga_SAF=14 |win_TAM=2 |draw_TAM=2 |loss_TAM=10 |gf_TAM=10 |ga_TAM=28 |win_TBU=8 |draw_TBU=3 |loss_TBU=3 |gf_TBU=35 |ga_TBU=18 |win_WLW=6 |draw_WLW=3 |loss_WLW=5 |gf_WLW=29 |ga_WLW=25

|name_BLC = [[Balestier Central]] |name_GLU = [[Geylang United]] |name_POL = [[Home United|Police FC]] |name_SEM = [[Sembawang Rangers]] |name_SAF = [[Singapore Armed Forces FC|Singapore Armed Forces]] |name_TAM = [[Tampines Rovers]] |name_TBU = [[Tiong Bahru United]] |name_WLW = [[Woodlands Wellington]]

|show_limit=5 |class_rules = 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored |res_col_header=Q |col_CSP=green1 |text_CSP=Qualification to<br>[[#S.League Championship Playoff|S.League Championship<br>play-off match]] }}</onlyinclude>

===S.League Championship Playoff===

{{Football box | date = {{Start date|1996|11|9|df=y}} | time = | team1 = [[Singapore Armed Forces FC|Singapore Armed Forces]] | score = 1–2 | report = | team2 = [[Geylang International|Geylang United]] | goals1 = [[Jure Ereš]] {{goal|52}} | goals2 = [[Mohammad Khakpour]] {{goal|46}} <br> [[Hamid Reza Estili]] {{goal|61}} | stadium = [[National Stadium, Singapore|Singapore National Stadium]], Kallang | attendance = 30,000 | referee = }}

The [[Geylang International|Geylang United]] victory in the Championship Playoff saw them qualify for the [[1997–98 Asian Club Championship]]. This was the first Singaporean representation in the Asian Club Championship since 1991–92, when Geylang International participated in 1st Round qualifying. Geylang were comfortably defeated by [[1996 J.League]] champions [[Kashima Antlers]] in the first round of the East Asian half of the competition, Kashima finishing with an 8–2 aggregate win.

==Top scorers== {| ! Rank !!width='150'|Name!!width='180'|Club!! Goals |- |align="center"|1||{{flagicon|Croatia}} [[Jure Ereš]]||[[Singapore Armed Forces FC|Singapore Armed Forces]]||align="center"|28 |- |align="center"|2||{{flagicon|Croatia}} [[Goran Paulić]]||[[Balestier Central]]||align="center"|22 |- |align="center"|3||{{flagicon|Brazil}} [[Egmar Goncalves]]||[[Home United|Police]]||align="center"|19 |- |}

==References== {{Reflist}} *{{cite web|last=Ong|first=Henry|title=Singapore 1996|website=[[RSSSF]]|url=https://www.rsssf.org/tabless/sing96.html|access-date=8 May 2014}}

{{S-League}}

[[Category:Singapore Premier League seasons]] [[Category:1996 in Singaporean football|1]] [[Category:1995–96 in Asian association football leagues|Sing]] [[Category:1996–97 in Asian association football leagues|Sing]]