# Young Lions FC > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Young_Lions_FC > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Young_Lions_FC.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_Lions_FC > Source revision: 1354277413 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) Association football club from Singapore This article is about of the developmental Singapore Premier League club. For the national age-group team, see [Singapore national under-23 football team](/source/Singapore_national_under-23_football_team). Football club Young Lions Full name Young Lions Football Club Nickname Merlion Cubs Founded 2002; 24 years ago (2002) Ground Jalan Besar Stadium Capacity 7,100[1] Owner Football Association of Singapore Chairman Farehan Hussein Head coach Firdaus Kassim League Singapore Premier League 2024–25 Singapore Premier League, 8th of 9 Home colours Away colours Current season **Young Lions Football Club**, commonly known as **Young Lions**, is a developmental [football](/source/Association_football) club based in [Kallang](/source/Kallang), [Singapore](/source/Singapore), which competes in the [Singapore Premier League](/source/Singapore_Premier_League). The team is under the control of the [Football Association of Singapore](/source/Football_Association_of_Singapore). Young Lions are one of the few football clubs in the world made up of young Singaporean footballers serving their [compulsory two-year national service](/source/National_service_in_Singapore), which places an age restriction on team members while playing in a top-flight professional league. Players are on loan from several local Singapore Premier League clubs, and would spend two years with the side before returning. Young Lions play their home matches at the [Jalan Besar Stadium](/source/Jalan_Besar_Stadium). Their best league finish was third, which they achieved in 2004 and 2006. ## History By entering the Young Lions into the S.League, the FAS hopes to expose young players to top-level competition, thus helping to prepare them for international tournaments such as the [Southeast Asian Games](/source/Southeast_Asian_Games). While the bulk of the Young Lions squad is made up of members of Singapore's national under-23 team, the club also takes in promising young foreign players (e.g. [Luka Savić](/source/Luka_Savi%C4%87)). However, foreign players are normally only recruited into the Young Lions squad if they could potentially change their nationality to Singaporean and be eligible to play international football for Singapore at some point in the future. ### Malaysian domestic competition In 2011, the Football Association of Singapore and the [Football Association of Malaysia](/source/Football_Association_of_Malaysia) reached an agreement that would see greater cooperation between the two nations. One of the intended avenues would see Young Lions play in the [Malaysian Super League](/source/Malaysian_Super_League) and [Malaysia Cup](/source/Malaysia_Cup) from 2012. The squad will be permitted up to five local players over the age of 14–16 players, as well as a number of overseas players in accordance with the quota set out by the rules of the Malaysian competitions.[2] Ultimately, a new team was created, the [LionsXII](/source/LionsXII), while the Young Lions remained in the S.League. ### National Football Academy Most of the Young Lions players come from the NFA ([National Football Academy](/source/National_Football_Academy_(Singapore))) and new players (from the NFA) will be promoted to the Young Lions squad every season. The National Football Academy enters both the Singapore NFA U-17 and [Singapore NFA U-18](/source/Singapore_NFA_U-18) teams into the [Prime League](/source/Prime_League) to allow their players to gain more exposure and match experience by playing against older and more established players.[3] ### Foreign players In 2023, Young Lions signed the Japanese duo [Jun Kobayashi](/source/Jun_Kobayashi) and [Kan Kobayashi](/source/Kan_Kobayashi) from [Albirex Niigata (S)](/source/Albirex_Niigata_(S)) becoming the first foreign players since France's [Benjamin Bertrand](/source/Benjamin_Bertrand) from [Tours](/source/Tours_FC) in 2016. In preparation for the [2024–25 Singapore Premier League](/source/2024%E2%80%9325_Singapore_Premier_League) season, Young Lions signed two additional Japanese players, [Kaisei Ogawa](/source/Kaisei_Ogawa) and [Itsuki Enomoto](/source/Itsuki_Enomoto), and the Australian [Rashid Hayek](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rashid_Hayek&action=edit&redlink=1) from [Western United](/source/Western_United_FC), making it the first time the club had five foreigners in the squad. On 28 March 2025, Young Lions recorded their highest ever win during the [2024–25 Singapore Cup](/source/2024%E2%80%9325_Singapore_Cup) fixtures against Albirex Niigata (S) where Kaisei Ogawa became the second players in the club history to score four goals in one match since [Zikos Chua](/source/Zikos_Chua) against [Tanjong Pagar United](/source/Tanjong_Pagar_United_FC) on 7 August 2022. After a reshuffle in the [Football Association of Singapore](/source/Football_Association_of_Singapore) seeing [Forrest Li](/source/Forrest_Li) as the FAS new president in 2025, Young Lions saw a major overhaul in the club during the 2025–26 season where they signed a new partnership with Denmark manufacturing company [Select](/source/Select_Sport), ending a deal with Nike after 17 years. The club also got a main sponsor for the front of their jersey with Chinese [state-owned](/source/State-owned_enterprises_of_China) automobile company, [Dongfeng](/source/Dongfeng_Motor_Corporation). Young Lions also went on to sign a few youngsters from Brazil, including [Abner Vinicius](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Abner_Vinicius_do_Nascimento_Custodio&action=edit&redlink=1), [Joilson](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joilson_Lucas_Souza_Nascimento&action=edit&redlink=1), [Lucas Agueiro](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lucas_Agueiro&action=edit&redlink=1) and [Sérgio Mendonça](/source/Sergio_de_Mendon%C3%A7a_Siqueira_Filho) while they loaned a few under-21 foreign players from Lion City Sailors, such as [Enrico Walmrath](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Enrico_Walmrath_Silveira&action=edit&redlink=1), [Harry Spence](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Harry_Spence_(footballer,_born_2003)&action=edit&redlink=1) and [Benjamin Žerak](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Benjamin_%C5%BDerak&action=edit&redlink=1). ## Stadium Pitchside view of the [Jalan Besar Stadium](/source/Jalan_Besar_Stadium) in November 2008 Main article: [Jalan Besar Stadium](/source/Jalan_Besar_Stadium) Young Lions have played at the Jalan Besar Stadium since their inception of participating in the S.League. The stadium can hold a [seating capacity](/source/Seating_capacity) of 8,000. In 2012, As part of the LionsXII's sponsorship by Kingsmen, a local fan club, the King George's Stand was built using a removable stand, increasing the stadium's capacity to 10,000. On 30 October 2012, an LED scoreboard was implemented at the Gallery stand to provide better quality video to the spectators, allowing replay video highlights of the action on the field during matchdays. Two new screens were also placed at the two ends of the Grandstand, North and South, to enable better match experience for the Gallery fans. ## Kit suppliers and naming history Young Lions kit was manufactured by local brand [Tiger](/source/Tiger_Beer) who than collaborate with Italian sportswear [Diadora](/source/Diadora). The club was than sponsor by Japanese brand [Maxell](/source/Maxell). In 2008, Young Lions alongside the [Singapore national team](/source/Singapore_national_football_team) kit was than manufactured by [Nike](/source/Nike%2C_Inc.). From 2011, Young Lions was sponsored by [Courts](/source/Courts_Singapore) where the club began to change it name to Courts Young Lions until 2015 where they was than sponsored by Garena thus changing the name to Garena Young Lions until 2017. In August 2025, Young Lions signed a deal with Danish sportswear [Select](/source/Select_Sport) ending a 17 years contract with Nike. The club also partners with Chinese [state-owned](/source/State-owned_enterprises_of_China) automobile company, [Dongfeng](/source/Dongfeng_Motor_Corporation) as the club main sponsor. Period Kit manufacturer Main sponsor 2003–2007 Tiger (Collaboration with Diadora) Maxell 2008–2010 Nike No sponsors 2011–2015 Courts 2016–2017 Garena 2017–2025 No sponsors 2025–present Select Dongfeng Club name history Year Sponsors Club name References 2011–2015 Courts Courts Young Lions [4] 2016–2017 Garena Garena Young Lions [5] ## Players ### First-team squad - *As of 13 January 2026*[6] Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under [FIFA eligibility rules](/source/FIFA_eligibility_rules); some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality. No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK SGP Aizil Yazid (on loan from Hougang United) 4 DF BRA Joilson 5 DF BRA Enrico Walmrath (on loan from Lion City Sailors) 6 MF SGP Ajay Robson 7 FW BRA Abner Vinicius 8 DF SGP Andrew Aw (on loan from Tampines Rovers) 9 FW BRA Sergio Mendonça 10 MF SGP Amir Syafiz (captain) (on loan from Hougang United) 11 FW ENG Harry Spence (on loan from Lion City Sailors) 12 FW SGP Louka Tan (on loan from Hougang United) 15 DF SGP Marcus Mosses (on loan from Lion City Sailors) No. Pos. Nation Player 17 DF SGP Iryan Fandi (on loan from Hougang United) 19 DF SGP Aqil Yazid (on loan from Hougang United) 20 DF SGP Fairuz Fazli 21 DF SGP Keiran Teo 22 DF SGP Junki Kenn Yoshimura (on loan from Albirex Niigata (S)) 31 GK SGP Izwan Mahbud (on loan from Lion City Sailors) 33 MF SGP Nathan Mao (on loan from Lion City Sailors) 41 FW SGP Kian Ghadessy 43 DF SGP Adam Reefdy 45 DF SGP Luth Harith 66 DF SGP Abdil Qaiyyim Mutalib — MF WAL Kai Whitmore ### 'B' squad - *As of 26 September 2025* The Young Lions B squad that is representing the team in the [Singapore Premier League 2](/source/Singapore_Premier_League_2) Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under [FIFA eligibility rules](/source/FIFA_eligibility_rules); some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality. No. Pos. Nation Player 26 DF SGP Iliya Naufal (captain)(on loan from Lion City Sailors) 27 MF SGP Garv Sahoo 28 FW SGP Syazwan Latiff 30 FW SGP Casey Klein 32 GK MAS Ashman Saravanan (on loan from Lion City Sailors) 34 MF SGP Harith Danish (on loan from Lion City Sailors) 35 GK SGP Firman Nabil 36 DF SGP Idzham Eszuan 37 DF SGP Ikram Mikhaill 38 DF SGP Ilhan Rizqullah 39 FW SGP Ilyasin Zayan (on loan from Lion City Sailors) No. Pos. Nation Player 40 DF SGP Jovan Ang 42 FW SGP Ryan Vishal 44 MF SGP Nyqil Iyyan 46 MF SGP Loo Kai Sheng 47 FW SGP Nicolas Beninger 48 DF SGP Nur Muhammad Fadly 49 FW SGP Uchenna Eziakor 50 FW SGP Sarrvin Raj (on loan from Lion City Sailors) 51 FW SGP Yazid Rais 52 GK SGP Travis Ang ## Management and staff Position Name Team manager Sakthi Vel Ganesan Head coach Firdaus Kassim Assistant coach Fadzuhasny Juraimi Afiq Yahya Goalkeeper coach Ahmadulhaq Che Omar Fitness coach Donald Wan Physiotherapist Alex Poon Sports trainer Ryan Wang Jasmori Rasip Equipment officer Omar Mohamed Source:[7] ## Performance in domestic competitions Season League Pos. Pld W D L GS GA Pts Singapore Cup League Cup 2003 S.League 12th 33 6 1–5 21 33 77 25 Quarter-finals 2004 3rd 27 14 5 8 74 52 47 Quarter-finals 2005 6th 27 12 6 9 44 37 42 Quarter-finals 2006 3rd 30 15 7 8 67 43 52 Quarter-finals 2007 5th 33 13 8 12 45 54 47 Preliminary Withdrew 2008 9th 33 7 10 16 30 46 31 Semi-finals Semi-finals 2009 8th 30 9 7 14 33 48 34 Preliminary Group stage 2010 9th 33 9 12 12 37 45 34 Semi-finals Preliminary 2011 9th 33 7 6 20 33 54 27 Withdrew Withdrew 2012 10th 24 6 5 13 25 37 23 Withdrew Group stage 2013 12th 27 5 3 19 20 52 18 Preliminary Group stage 2014 10th 27 7 5 15 38 54 26 Did not participate Did not participate 2015 9th 27 7 6 14 30 43 27 Did not participate Did not participate 2016 9th 24 2 3 19 23 70 9 Preliminary Did not participate 2017 9th 24 1 3 20 10 62 6 Did not participate Did not participate 2018 Singapore Premier League 7th 24 5 6 13 25 46 21 Did not participate 2019 8th 24 6 4 14 21 38 22 Did not participate 2020 7th 14 3 0 11 12 38 9 Not Held 2021 7th 21 4 4 13 26 50 16 Not Held 2022 8th 28 2 2 24 34 103 8 Group Stage 2023 9th 24 1 2 21 24 76 5 Group Stage - [2003](/source/2003_S.League) saw the introduction of [penalty shoot-outs](/source/Penalty_shoot-out) if a match ended in a draw in regular time. Winners of penalty shoot-outs gained two points instead of one. ## Notable foreign players - [Craig Foster](/source/Craig_Foster) (1991) - [Kazeem Babatunde](/source/Kazeem_Babatunde) (2003–2004) - [Vladan Seric](/source/Vladan_Seric) (2004) - [Greg Nwokolo](/source/Greg_Nwokolo) (2005) - [Moudourou Moise](/source/Moudourou_Moise) (2006–2008) - [Daniel Hammond](/source/Daniel_Hammond) (2008) - [Obadin Aikhena](/source/Obadin_Aikhena) (2008–2009) - [Yang Mu](/source/Yang_Mu_(footballer)) (2009) - [Luka Savić](/source/Luka_Savi%C4%87) (2010) - [Sirina Camara](/source/Sirina_Camara) (2012) - [Jonathan Toto](/source/Jonathan_Toto) (2012–2013) - [Sherif El-Masri](/source/Sherif_El-Masri) (2012–2015) - [Benjamin Lee](/source/Benjamin_Lee_(footballer)) (2013) - [Jordan Webb](/source/Jordan_Webb) (2014–2016) - [Benjamin Bertrand](/source/Benjamin_Bertrand) (2016) - [Armin Maier](/source/Armin_Maier) (2017) - [Jun Kobayashi](/source/Jun_Kobayashi) (2023–2025) - [Kan Kobayashi](/source/Kan_Kobayashi) (2023–2025) - [Itsuki Enomoto](/source/Itsuki_Enomoto) (2024) - [Kaisei Ogawa](/source/Kaisei_Ogawa) (2024–2025) ## Coaching history No. Head coach Years 1 P. N. Sivaji 1 January 2003 – 31 December 2003 2 Kim Poulsen 1 January 2004 – 31 December 2004 3 Fandi Ahmad 1 January 2005 – 31 December 2006 4 V. Sundramoorthy 1 January 2007 – 31 December 2008 5 Terry Pathmanathan 1 January 2009 – 13 January 2010 6 V. Sundramoorthy (2) 14 January 2010 – 31 December 2010 7 Robin Chitrakar 1 January 2011 – 13 January 2013 8 Aide Iskandar 14 January 2013 – 11 June 2015 9 Jürgen Raab 1 July 2015 – 13 January 2016 10 Richard Tardy 1 January 2016 – 15 February 2016 11 Patrick Hesse 15 February 2016 – 9 November 2016 12 V. Selvaraj 9 November 2016 – 17 May 2017 13 Richard Tardy (2) 17 May 2017 – 27 July 2017 14 Vincent Subramaniam 5 August 2017 – 14 December 2017 15 Fandi Ahmad (2) 14 December 2017 – 31 December 2019 16 Nazri Nasir 1 January 2020 – 10 March 2021 17 Philippe Aw 11 March 2021 – 31 December 2021 18 Nazri Nasir (2) 1 January 2022 – 31 December 2022 19 Philippe Aw (2) 1 January 2023 – 18 May 2023 20 Fadzuhasny Juraimi (interim) 18 May 2023 – 12 July 2023 21 Nazri Nasir (3) 13 July 2023 – 16 January 2025 22 Fadzuhasny Juraimi (interim) (2) 16 January 2025 – 25 June 2025 23 Firdaus Kassim 25 June 2025–present ## Records and statistics *As of 14 May 2026* ### Most appearances Rank Player Years Appearances 1 Afiq Yunos 2008–2013 132 2 Syahrul Sazali 2016–2019 2021–2022 101 Shahril Ishak 2003–2006 4 Hariss Harun 2007–2011 90 5 Syazwan Buhari 2010–2015 87 Amirul Adli 2011–2017 Sherif El-Masri 2012–2015 Amir Syafiz 2021–present 9 Izwan Mahbud 2008–2011 2026–present 84 9 Faritz Abdul Hameed 2009–2012 83 ### Top scorers Rank Player Appearances Goals 1 Khairul Amri 79 49 2 Agu Casmir 34 31 3 Shahril Ishak 101 20 4 Sherif El-Masri 87 18 Qiu Li 27 6 Khairul Nizam 57 15 7 Jordan Webb 39 14 Shi Jiayi 66 9 Ilhan Fandi 33 13 Itsuki Enomoto 19 10 Sahil Suhaimi 38 12 ### Team records **Biggest wins** - 7–1 vs [Sinchi](/source/Sinchi_FC) on 23 September 2004 - 7–1 vs [Albirex Niigata (S)](/source/Albirex_Niigata_(S)) on 28 March 2025 **Heaviest Defeats** - 1–10 vs [Lion City Sailors](/source/Lion_City_Sailors_FC) (13 August 2022) **Youngest goal scorer** - [Khairin Nadim](/source/Khairin_Nadim), 16 years 6 months and 9 days (On 17 November 2020 vs Tampines Rovers) **Oldest goal scorer** - [Khairul Amri](/source/Khairul_Amri), 31 years 6 months and 11 days (On 1 April 2023 vs Geylang International) **Youngest debutant** - [Raoul Suhaimi](/source/Raoul_Suhaimi), 15 years 7 months 27 days (15 May 2021 vs [Albirex Niigata (S)](/source/Albirex_Niigata_(S))) ### Notable Hat-tricks Key 4 Player scored four goals * Opponent was the home team Notable players to scored a hat-trick for the club Player Score Opponent Date Agu Casmir 7–1 Sinchi 23 September 2004 Qiu Li 5–0 Geylang United 22 March 2006 Khairul Amri 4–2 Woodlands Wellington 19 May 2006 Qiu Li (2) 0–5 Balestier Khalsa* 7 June 2006 Khairul Amri (2) 0–3 Sporting Afrique* 6 July 2006 Zikos Chua4 4–2 Tanjong Pagar United 8 July 2022 Kaisei Ogawa4 7–1 Albirex Niigata (S) 28 March 2025 ## Club captains Position Name 2004–2013 TBC 2014–2015 Al-Qaasimy Rahman 2016 Khairul Amri 2017 Shahrin Saberin 2018 Taufiq Muqminin 2019–2022 Jacob Mahler 2023 Harhys Stewart 2024–2025 Ryaan Sanizal 2025–present Amir Syafiz ## Personal awards ### Domestic - **League Young Player of the Year** - [Hariss Harun](/source/Hariss_Harun) (2010) ### Others - **People's Choice Award** - [Agu Casmir](/source/Agu_Casmir) (2004) - [Khairul Amri](/source/Khairul_Amri) (2006) - [Safuwan Baharudin](/source/Safuwan_Baharudin) (2011) ## See also - [Singapore FA](/source/Singapore_FA) ## References 1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["Jalan Besar Stadium"](https://www.activesgcircle.gov.sg/facilities/jalan-besar-stadium). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** [Singapore Lions to participate in 2012 Malaysia Cup](https://web.archive.org/web/20120110131100/http://news.asiaone.com/News/Latest+News/Sports/Story/A1Story20110712-288801.html) – Asia One, 12/07/11 1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** ["Prime League Table"](https://web.archive.org/web/20141219211717/http://www.sleague.com/competitions/prime-league/table). S.League Official Website. 11 July 2012. Archived from the original on 19 December 2014. Retrieved 31 October 2012. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** ["Soccer-Singapore's Young Lions get name change, S$1 million"](https://www.reuters.com/article/idUKL3E7CR0EC20110127). *Reuters*. 2011-01-27. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20230416031050/https://www.reuters.com/article/idUKL3E7CR0EC20110127) from the original on 2023-04-16. Retrieved 2023-04-16. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** ["Young Lions snare S$4m sponsorship deal - biggest in S.League history"](https://www.todayonline.com/sports/football/internet-company-garena-pens-two-year-sponsorship-deal-sleague-club-young-lions). *TODAY*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20230416032552/https://www.todayonline.com/sports/football/internet-company-garena-pens-two-year-sponsorship-deal-sleague-club-young-lions) from the original on 2023-04-16. Retrieved 2023-04-16. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** ["SPL 2023 Transfer Centre Club Guide: Young Lions"](https://spl.sg/2023-singapore-premier-league-transfer-centre/). Singapore Premier League. 28 January 2023. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20230116082234/https://spl.sg/2023-singapore-premier-league-transfer-centre/) from the original on 16 January 2023. Retrieved 28 January 2023. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** ["Club Profile – Garena Young Lions"](https://web.archive.org/web/20160216003336/http://www.sleague.com/clubs-profile/garena-young-lions/club-profile). *S-League*. Archived from the original on 16 February 2016. Retrieved 3 February 2016. ## External links - [Official website](http://younglions.com.sg/) - [S.League website page on Young Lions](https://web.archive.org/web/20160216003336/http://www.sleague.com/clubs-profile/garena-young-lions/club-profile) v t e Young Lions FC Club Players History All articles Stadium Jalan Besar Stadium Current squad Players 1 Nurshafiq 4 Danish Irfan 5 Shahrin (c) 7 Ryan 8 Yeo 9 Taufik 10 Zulqarnaen 11 Rasaq Akeem 12 Syahrul 13 Armin 14 Hami 15 Faizal 16 Stewart 17 Ilhan Fandi 18 Zharfan 19 Hafiz 20 Muhaimin 21 Chan 22 Haiqal 23 Amirul 24 Crichton 25 Rusyaidi 26 Lee 27 Taufiq 28 Muhelmy 29 Ehvin 30 Adib 31 Mahler Coaches Coach: Tardy Seasons 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024-25 2025-26 v t e Singapore Premier League (SPL) S.League seasons 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 Singapore Premier League seasons 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024–25 2025–26 2026–27 2026–27 clubs (manager, season) FC Jurong Shigetomi season Balestier Khalsa Kraljević season BG Tampines Rovers Akbar season Geylang International Noor Ali season Hougang United Eziakor season Lion City Sailors Ranković season Tanjong Pagar United Noh Alam season Young Lions Firdaus season Former clubs Beijing Guoan Dalian Shide Siwu DPMM Étoile Gombak United Harimau Muda A Harimau Muda B Jurong Liaoning Guangyuan Sembawang Rangers Sinchi Sporting Afrique Super Reds Warriors Woodlands Wellington Authority control databases VIAF --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Young Lions FC](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_Lions_FC) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_Lions_FC?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.